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I 


JEWISH  Am>  CONTEJU'ORAnV  CHKONOLOCV  FROM  007  TO   loa   H.C. 


C6e  !E)i0torlcaI  IBihlz 


THE  MAKEES  AND  TEACHERS 
OF  JUDAISM 

FROM  THE  FALL  OF   JERUSALEM  TO   THE   DEATH 
OF  HEROD   THE   GREAT 


BY 
CHARLES    FOSTER    KENT,    Ph.D. 

WOOLSEY  PROFESSOB  OF  BIBLICAL  LITEHATCRE  IN    TALE   CNIVERBITT 


WITH   MAPS  Aim   CHARTS 


CHARLES   SCRIBNER'S  SONS 

NEW  YORK  CHICAGO  BOSTON 


COPTHIGHT,   1911,  Bt 

I5HARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 


PREFACE 

The  period  represented  by  this  volume  is  in  many  ways  the  most 
complex  and  confusing  in  Israel's  history.  The  record  is  not  that  of 
the  life  of  a  nation  but  of  the  scattered  remnants  of  a  race.  It  was  in- 
evitable that  under  the  influence  of  their  varied  environment,  the  sur- 
vivors of  the  Jewish  race  should  develop  very  different  beliefs  and 
characteristics.  The  result  is  that  many  different  currents  of  thought 
and  shades  of  belief  are  reflected  in  the  literature  of  this  period;  some  of 
it  is  dross,  but  much  of  it  is  purest  gold.  While  the  period  following 
the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  was  a  reflective  and  a  retrospective  age  in 
which  the  teaching  of  the  earlier  priests  and  prophets  gained  wide  ac- 
ceptance, it  was  also  a  creative  era.  Fully  half  of  the  literature  of  the 
Old  Testament  and  all  of  the  important  writings  of  the  Apocrypha  come 
from  these  tragic  five  centuries.  Although  the  historical  records  are  by 
no  means  complete,  the  great  crises  in  Israel's  life  are  illuminated  by 
such  remarkable  historical  writings  as  the  memoirs  of  Nehemiah,  the 
first  book  of  Maccabees,  and  the  detailed  histories  of  Josephus. 

The  majority  of  the  writings,  however,  reveal  above  all  the  soul  of 
the  race.  Out  of  its  anguish  and  suffering  came  the  immortal  poems 
found  in  Isaiah  40-66,  the  book  of  Job,  and  the  Psalter.  Instead  of  the 
distinctly  nationalistic  point  of  view,  which  characterizes  practically  all 
of  the  writings  of  the  pre-exilic  period,  the  interest  becomes  individual 
and  the  outlook  universal.  During  these  ceaturies  Israel's  prophets, 
priests,  and  sages  became  not  merely  teachers  of  the  nation  but  of 
humanity.  Conspicuous  among  the  great  teachers  of  his  day  stands  the 
noble  sage,  Jesus  the  son  of  Sirach,  who  gleaned  out  and  presented  in 
effective  form  that  which  was  most  vital  in  the  earlier  teaching  of  his 
race.  In  his  broad,  simple  faith  in  God  and  man,  in  his  emphasis  on 
deeds  and  character,  as  well  as  ceremonial,  and  in  his  practical  phi- 
losophy of  life  he  was  a  worthy  forerunner  of  the  Great  Teacher  whose 
name  he  bore. 

This  period  represents  the  culmination  and  fruition  of  the  divine  in- 
fluences at  work  in  Israel's  early  history.    It  was  during  this  period 


PREFACE 

that  Judaism  was  bom  and  attained  its  full  development,  Israel  accepted 
the  absolute  rule  of  the  written  law,  and  the  scribes  succeeded  the  eariier 
prophets  and  sages.  Out  of  the  heat  and  conflict  of  the  Maccabcan 
struggle  the  parties  of  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees  sprang  into  existence 
and  won  their  commanding  place  in  the  life  of  Judaism.  Hence  this 
period  is  the  natural  historical  introduction  to  the  study  of  the  birth 
and  early  development  of  Christianity.  It  is  also  the  link  that  binds 
the  revelation  found  in  the  Old  Testament  to  that  of  the  New. 

The  volume  of  literature  coming  from  this  period  is  so  vast  that  it 
has  been  necessary  to  abridge  it  at  many  points  in  order  to  utilize  that 
which  is  most  valuable.  This  has  been  done  by  leaving  out  those  pas- 
siiges  which  are  of  secondary  origin  or  value,  and  by  preserving  at  the 
same  time  the  language  and  logical  thought  of  the  original  writers.  In 
the  verbose  and  voluminous  writings  of  Josephus  the  resulting  text  is 
in  most  cases  far  clearer  and  more  useful;  for  the  repetitious  clauses 
found  in  the  original  often  obscure  the  real  thought  of  the  writer.  No 
apology  or  explanation  is  required  for  the  use  of  such  apocryphal  writ- 
ings as  I  ]Maccabees,  Ben  Sira,  the  Wisdom  of  Solomon,  or  Josephus's 
histories,  for  these  are  required  to  bridge  the  two  centuries  which  inter- 
vene between  the  latest  writings  of  the  Old  Testament  and  the  earliest 
writings  of  the  New.  They  make  it  possible  to  study  biblical  history  as 
an  unbroken  unit  from  the  days  of  Moses  to  the  close  of  the  first  Chris- 
tian century,  and  thus  concretely  to  emphasize  the  significant  but  often 
the  forgotten  fact  that  God  was  revealing  himself  unceasingly  through 
the  life  of  his  people,  and  that  the  Bible  Avhich  records  that  revelation 
consists  not  of  two  disconnected  parts  but  is  one  book. 

To  two  of  ray  former  students,  the  Reverend  Harold  B.  Hunting  and 
Ralph  H.  Pierce,  I  am  under  obligation  for  valuable  aid  and  suggestions 
in  preparing  this  volume  for  press. 

C.  F.  K. 
Yale  University, 
October,  1911. 


I 


CONTENTS 

THE  EXILE  AND  REVIVAL  OF  THE  JUDEAN 

COMMUNITY 

PA«a 
§  XCI.    The  Jews  in  Palestine  and  Egypt 1 

Lam.  2'-i'',  S'-'s.  Jer.  438-i2,  44'-".  ^\ 
I.  The  Significance  of  the  Destruction  of  the  Hebrew 
State. — II.  The  Book  of  Lamentations. — III.  Author- 
ship and  Date  of  the  Book. — IV.  Its  Real  Character. — 
V.  Numbers  and  Fortunes  of  the  Jews  Who  Remained 
in  Palestine. — VI.  Fortunes  of  the  Jews  in  Efrypt. — 
VII.  The  Jewish  Colony  at  Elephantine.— VIII.  The 
Temple  of  Jahu  at  Elephantine. 

§  XCII.    Ezekiel's  Message  to  His  Scattered  Country- 
men        12 

Ezek.    37,    40''  "■  '5.  IV,  is,  20,  2ib,  24b,  44-47^    41'-8«,    43'-9, 

449-I6,  23,  24     451-8, 

L  The  Home  of  the  Exiles  in  Babylon. — II.  Their  New 
Conditions  and  Occupations. — III.  Their  Religious  Life. 
IV.  The  Prophecies  of  Ezekiel. — V.  The  Resurrection 
of  the  Dead  Nation. — VI.  The  Divine  Shepherd.— VII. 
Ezekiel's  Plan  of  the  Restored  Temple. 

§  XCni.    The  Closing  Years  op  the  Babylonlvn  Rule.  .       23 

II  Kings  252'-30,  Isa.  9'-',  ll'-io.  132-<.  ". ".  "b.  19-22,  Ezra 
63-5,  514,  15,  15. 6,  I  Esdr.  5^-6,  Ezra  3^-*'  et. 
I.  The  Transformation  of  the  Jews  into  a  Literary 
People. — 11.  The  Literary  Activity  of  the  Babylonian 
Period.— III.  The  Holiness  Code.— IV.  The  Liberation 
of  Jehoiachin  and  the  Hopes  of  the  Jews. — V.  The  Rule 
of  Nabonidus. — VII.  Rise  and  Conquests  of  Cyrus. — 
VII.  His  Capture  of  Babylon.— VIII.  His  Treatment 
of  Conquered  Peoples. 

§  XCIV.    The  Rebuilding  of  the  Temple 35 

Hag.  1,  2,  Ezra  S'-G'*. 

I.  The  Books  of  Ezra  and  Nehemiah. — II.  The  Chron- 
icler's Conception  of  the  Restoration. — III.  Convul- 
sions in  the  Persian  Empire. — IV.  Haggai's  Effective 
Addresses. — V.  The  Attempt  to  Stop  the  Rebuilding 
of  the  Temple. — VI.  The  Significance  of  the  Restora- 
tion of  the  Temple. 

vii 


CONTENTS 


§  XCV.    Zechariah's  Visions  and  Encouraging  Addresses      43 

Zech.  l'-46».  "-K.  •''-•o.  69-'5,  7,  8'-«. 
I.  Zechariah's  Ancestry  and  Point  of  View. — II.  Tha 
Book  of  Zechariah. — III.  Problems  and  Hopes  of  the 
Judean  Community. — IV.  Zechariah's  Assurances  of 
Jehovah's  Care. — V.  Preparations  for  the  Crowning  of 
Zerubbabel. — VI.  Disappointment  of  these  Patriotic 
Hopes. — VII.  Zechariah's  Later  Exhortations  and  Pre- 
dictions. 

§  XCVI.    Israel's  Training  and  Destiny 53 

Is.  40'-*'  ^'  2'  41'-*'  *-'"  42'-''  '*-^  43'-''  '"•"•  ^-^^  44'-5. 
I.  The  Seventy  Years  Following  the  Rebuilding  of  the 
Temple. — II.  Spiritual  Forces  in  Judaism. — III.  Evi- 
dences that  Isaiah  40-66  Were  Written  in  Palestine. — 
IV.  Their  Probable  Date.— V.  Their  Literary  Charac- 
teristics.— VI.  Their  Theme  and  Purpose. — VII.  Rea- 
sons Why  Jehovah  Will  Restore  His  People. 

§  XCVII.    Conditions  and  Problems  Within  the  Judean 

Community 64 

Mai.  16-",  2,  3,  4>-3,  Ps.  22'-»8. 

I.  Date  of  the  Book  of  Malachi. — II.  Neglect  of  the 
Temple  Service. — III.  The  Need  of  a  Great  Moral 
Awakening.— IV.  The  Lot  of  the  Faithful.— V.  The 
Problem  of  Suffering  in  the  Literature  of  the  Period. 

§  XCVIII.    The  Problem  and  Teachings  of  the  Book  of 

Job 73 

Job  1,  2,  3^'  "•  "■  '5'  "•  !'■  '"-''■  ^-  *,  4'-''  •'••',  5"-*''  "•  '^ 

61-4b,  14,  15,  20-30         7I-6,  9-18,  40,  21,        §1-6  01-7,  16-20,  24,  31-36^ 

IQS-IS,  20-22  111,  7-9,  13-16  121-3.  13'-1*.  21-25^  147-10,  13-15,  18, 
>9,      15*-^      I6'-^'  n-13a,  18-21^      Igl,  6-7^      IQl,  13-16,  23-27^      20'"^ 

21''  '-^    22'-5'  ^'  2''  2*    23'-'    25'-*    26'    272'  *•  '■  '•'    29'-' 

30"-",   315-8.  35-37^   402,  8,  9^   382-7,  8-11,  39-41     422,  S,  6,  «_ 

1.  The  Structure  of  the  Book  of  Job. — II.  Dates  of 
the  Different  Parts.— III.  The  Prose  Story.— IV.  The 
Poem  of  Job. — V.  Progress  in  Job's  Thought. — VI. 
Significance  of  the  Speeches  of  Job. 

§  XCIX.    The  Training  and  Mission  op  the  True  Ser- 
vant OF  Jehovah 95 

Is.  49' -'3,  50*-'",  52'3-'5,  53. 

I.  The  Different  Portraits  of  Jehovah's  Servant. — II. 
The  Prophet's  Purpose. — III.  The  Character  and  Con- 
dition of  Those  to  Whom  the  Prophet  Appealed. — IV. 
The  Task  and  Training  of  Jehovah's  Servant. — V.  Meth- 
ods of  Jehovah's  Servant. — VI.  Realization  of  the  Ideal 
of  Service. 

vUi 


CONTENTS 

PASS 

§  C.    Nehemiah's  Work  in  Rebuilding  the  Walls  of 

Jerusalem 104 

Neh.  1-4,  6,  T'-^s  123i.  «•  "-*<•. 

I.  Nehemiah's  Memoirs. — II.  Nehemiah's  Response  to 
the  Call  to  Service. — III.  Obstacles  that  Confronted 
Him.— IV.  His  Plan  of  Work.— V.  The  Restored  Walls. 
—VI.  Completion  and  Dedication  of  the  Walls. 

§  CI.    Nehemiah's  Social  and  Religious  Reforms 117 

Is.  56,  582->«,  Neh.  5,  13<-«>. 

I.  Cruelty  and  Hypocrisy  of  the  Jewish  Leaders. — II. 
Nehemiah's  Method  of  Correcting  the  Social  Evils  in 
the  Community. — III.  The  Historical  Value  of  Nehe- 
miah  13. — IV.  Regulations  Regarding  the  Temple  Ser- 
vice.— V.  Provisions  Regarding  Sabbath  Observance 
and  Foreign  Marriages. — VI.  Significance  of  Nehemiah's 
Work. 

§  CII.    Traditional  Account  op  the  Adoption  op  the 

Priestly  Law 126 

Ezra  7'' '-",  Neh.  T'st-g**-  s,  «■  s-is,  91-3,  e-s,  32-38^  lo^s-ssb^ 
I.  The  Ezra  Tradition.— II.  The  Historical  Value  of  the 
Ezra  Tradition.— III.  The  Facts  Underlying  It.— IV. 
Origin  and  Aims  of  the  Priestly  Laws. — V.  Their  Im- 
portant Regulations. — VI.  Their  Practical  Effects. 

§  CIII.    The  Jewish  State  during  the  Last  Century 

OF  Persian  Rule 134 

Ps.  365-10,  Joel  2'-29.  Jos.  Ant.  XI,  7-82. 
I.  Prosperity  of  the  Judean  Community. — II.  The 
Growth  of  the  Psalter. — III.  The  Prophecy  of  Joel. — 
IV.  Hopes  of  the  Jews. — V.  Rule  of  the  High  Priests. 
— VI.  The  Date  of  the  Samaritan  Schism.— VII.  Its 
Nature  and  Consequences. 


THE  GREEK  AND  MACCABEAN  AGE 
§  CIV.    The  Jews  under  Their  Greek  Rulers 146 

I  Mac.  V-*,  Jos.  Ant.  XI,  8'».  •,  XII,  I'b-d.  g-J,  2i«.  b-J.  •, 

4ld-f,  2a-f,  3b,  4a-c,  Ss-o,  •,  6a    33a    b,  •■«, 

I.  Josephus's  Histories. — II.  Alexander's  Conquests. — 
III.  The  Jews  in  Egypt  and  Alexandria. — IV.  The 
Rule  of  the  Ptolemies. — V.  Fortunes  of  the  Jews  of 
Palestine. — VI.  Conquest  of  Palestine  by  the  Seleuclds 
In  311  B.C. 

ix 


CONTENTS 

PAQB 

JCV.    The  Wise  AND  Their  Teachings 155 

Prov.  1'-',  8' ■••  "•"■*"-*,  13'<. '",  24',  12'^  20",  23"'  "■*, 
292",  1523,'l9",  165*,  232«-28,  425-",  1415^  26'^  2V,  4",  11«, 
21',  15',  32',  14",  19",  25=".  22,  3"-  '2,  l'.  «. 

I.  Structure  and  Authorship  of  the  Book  of  Proverbs. — 

II.  Date  of  the  Different  Collections.— III.  The  Wise 
in  Israel's  Early  History. — IV.  Their  Prominence  in  the 
Greek  Period.— V.  Their  Aims.— VI.  Their  Methods.— 
VII.  Their  Important  Teachings. 

§  CVI.    The  Different  Currents  of  Thought  in  Juda- 
ism DURING  the  Greek  Period 167 

Ps.  19'-»,  46,  222'-30,  Jonah  1,  2'.  Jo,  3,  4,  Eccles.  l>2-i8, 

21-17,  24-26^ 

I.  The  Ritualists.— II.  The  Legalists.— III.  The  Dis- 
ciples of  the  Prophets. — IV.  The  Date  and  Character  of 
the  Book  of  Jonah.— V.  Its  Teachings.— VI.  The  Book 
of  Ecclesiastes. — VII.  Koheleth's  Philosophy  of  Life. 

§  CVII.    The  Teachings  of  Jesus  the  Son  of  Sirach 177 

B.  Sir.  I'-io,  2'-'  3i'-30  42.  9.  •".  20-25.  28-3i^  51-2^  62, 4-8,  u-is^ 

712,  13,  20-22,  28-30_ 

I.  Date  and  Character  of  Jesus  the  Son  of  Sirach. — II. 
His  Writings.— III.  The  History  of  the  Book.— IV.  Its 
Picture  of  Jewish  Life. — V.  Rise  of  the  Scribes. — VI. 
The  Teachings  of  Ben  Sira. 

§  CVIII.    The  Causes  of  the  Maccabean  Struggle 186 

I  Mac.    111-22.  24-63. 

I.  The  Character  and  Contents  of  I  Maccabees. — II. 
Character  and  Contents  of  II  Maccabees. — III.  Aggres- 
sive Character  of  Hellenic  Culture. — IV.  Contrast  be- 
tween Hellenism  and  Judaism. — V.  Apostasy  of  the 
Jews  and  Perfidy  of  the  High  Priests.— VI.  Character 
of  Antiochus  Epiphanes. — VII.  His  Policy  toward  the 
Jews. 

§  CIX.    The  Effect  of  Persecution  upon  the  Jews  . . .     194 

I  Mac.  2,  Dan.  71-2',  12'-3. 

I.  The  Uprising  Led  by  Mattathias. — II.  Party  of  the 
Hasideans  or  Piou.s. — III.  Date  of  the  Visions  in  Daniel 
7-12.— IV.  Their  Real  Character  and  Aim.— V.  The 
Four  Heathen  Kingdoms  and  the  Kingdom  of  God. 

§  ex.    The  Victories  That  Gave  the  Jews  Religious 

Liberty 203 

I  Mac.  3i-«,  46.«o,  4. 

I.  The  Character  of  Judas. — II.  Obstacles  against  which 
Judas  Contended.— III.  Defeat  of  Apollonius  and  Se- 
ron.— IV.  The  Battle  of  Emmaus.— V.  The  Battle  at 
Bethsura. — VI.  Restoration  of  the  Temple  Service. — 
VII.  The  New  Spirit  ia  Judaism. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

§  CXI.    The   Long  Contest   for    Political   Indepen- 
dence       215 

I   Mac.    5'-*''  45,  64,  65-68,  63     §18-63     7      Ql-Sl       IQl-Sl,  67-71,  74-76^ 

I.  The  Political  Situation. — II.  The  Jewish  Attitude 
toward  the  Heathen  Reflected  in  the  Book  of  Esther. — 
III.  Campaigns  against  the  Neighboring  Peoples. — IV. 
The  Battle  of  Beth-zacharias. — V.  Victories  OverNica- 
nor.— VI.  The  Death  of  Judas. — VII.  Dissensions  in 
the  Syrian  Court. — VIII.  Concessions  to  Jonathan. 

§  CXII.    Peace  and  Prosperity  under  Simon 231 

I  Mac.  1138-40,  64-S6^  1259-",  131-1'.  20-30,  33,  43-63^  I4I6-I8. 
38-49,  4-15_ 

I.  Capture  and  Death  of  Jonathan. — II.  Character  and 
Policy  of  Simon. — III.  His  Conquests. — IV.  His  Au- 
thority.— V.  Completion  of  the  Psalter. — VI.  The  Re- 
ligious Life  Reflected  in  the  Later  Psalms. 

§  CXIII.    The  Rule  op  John  Hyrcanus  and  Aristobulus    240 

I  Mac.  16"-22,  Jos.  Jew.  War,  I,  23<'-''b.  4d,  s.  6,  Ant.  XIII, 
Old.  «,  Jew.  War,  I,  2'».  b,  Ant.  XIII,  IQs,  6»-«.  \  ll'"-". 

3a,  3e^ 

I.  Murder  of  Simon. — II.  The  Syrian  Invasion. — III. 
John's  Military  Policy  and  Conquests. — IV.  The  Break 
with  the  Pharisees. — V.  The  Reign  of  Aristobulus. 

§  CXIV    The  Pharisees,  Sadducees,  and  Essenes 247 

Jos.  Ant.  XVIII,  12.  s^-o.  3J.  4a.  b,  5a,  b,  jgw.  War,  II,  S^-s. 

9a-c,  10b,  c,  lib,  12_ 

I.  Influences  that  Gave  Rise  to  the  Jewish  Parties. — 

II.  Character  and  Beliefs  of  the  Pharisees. — III.  Of  the 
Sadducees. — IV.  Of  the  Essenes. 

§  CXV.    The  Life  and  Faith  of  the  Jews  of  the  Dis- 
persion      255 

Jos.  Ant.  XII.  3'\  VII,  33».  b,  i02<i-3e,  XIII,  10*,  Wisd.  of 

Sol.   6'2-'6,    7«-8''   \    l'-8.  12-15,    223-3',   515.  16,    1124-122,    151-3. 

I.  Conditions  of  the  Jews  in  Antioch  and  Asia  Minor. — 

II.  In  Egypt. — III.  The  Jewish  Temple  at  Leontopolis. 
— IV.  Translation  of  the  Hebrew  Scriptures  into  Greek. 
— V.  Apologetic  Jewish  Writings. — VI.  The  Wisdom  of 
Solomon. — VII.  Its  Important  Teachings. 

§  CXVI.    The  Decline  of  the  Maccabean  Kingdom 264 

Jos.  Jew.  War,  I,  4i-4<='  6«.  «»■  «•  ^"^  ^-  5'-7'. 

I.  The  Character  and  Policy  of  Alexander  Janneus. — 

II.  The  Effects  of  His  Rule.— III.  Alexandra's  Reign. 

xi 


CONTENTS 


— IV.  Quarrels  between  Hyrcanus  and  Aristobulus.— 
V.  Rome's  Intervention. — VI.  Cause  of  the  Fall  of  the 
Jewish  Kingdom. — VII.  Political,  Intellectual,  and  Re- 
ligious Effects  of  the  Maccabean  Struggle. 


THE  RULE  OF  ROME 

§  CXVII.    The  Rise  of  the  Herod ian  House 275 

Jos.  Jew.  War,  I,  S'-  <»■  «■'•  '^  Q'-  «»•«^  lO'- «».  *«■  *•  «»•  •>, 
in.  4. 8,  123-5,  i3ia,  Ant.  XIV,  13',  Jew.  War,  I,  13'.  8°, 

141b.  S,  4,    153,  4,    161,    171,  8.  9a,    Igl.  20,  4a, 

I.  The  Fruitless  Struggle  against  Rome. — II.  Anti- 
pater's  Policy. — III.  Herod's  Early  Record. — IV.  The 
Parthian  Conquest. — V.  Herod  Made  King  of  the  Jews. 

§  CXVni.    Herod's  Policy  and  Reign 285 

Jos.  Jew.  War,  I,  19'.  «».  20'.  "•  'b-**,  21i3.  i-<.  ^■^.  '"-lO".  n, 
221-*,  23i».  <*.  ^'-  "J-sa,  24i»,  27'.  ^-  ^^,  28'*,  292«,  30*",  31i», 
33'.  '.  8a. 

I.  Herod's  Character. — II.  His  Attitude  toward  Rome. 
III.  His  Building  Activity. — IV.  His  Attitude  toward 
His  Subjects. — V.  The  Tragedy  of  His  Domestic  Life. 
—VI.  Effects  of  His  Reign. 

§  CXIX.    Herod's  Temple 297 

Jos.   Ant.   XV,   111*.  2c,  3a-t,  4a,  g,  Sa-g,  h-k,  6. 

I.  Herod's  Motives. — II.  Preparations  for  the  Rebuild- 
ing of  the  Temple. — III.  The  Approaches  to  the  Tem- 
ple.— IV.  The  Organization  of  the  Temple. 

§  CXX.    The  Messianic  Hopes  and  the  Religious  Be- 
liefs OF  Judaism 303 

Sibyl.  Oracles,  III,  79'-",  1723-4«,  Enoch  46' -s,  483-8,  4927.29, 
511.  2, 

I.  The  Growth  of  Israel's  Messianic  Hopes. — II.  The 
Kingly,  Nationalistic  Type  of  Messianic  Hope. — III. 
The  Apocalyptic,  Catastrophic  Type. — IV.  The  Ethical 
and  Universalistic  Type. — V.  The  Messianic  Hopes  of 
Judaism  at  the  Beginning  of  the  Christian  Era. 

APPENDIX    I.    A  Practical  Biblical  Reference  Library    311 

APPENDIX  II.    General    Questions  and    Subjects    for 

Special  Research 312 


xu 


CONTENTS 


LIST  OF  MAPS  AND  CHARTS 

Jewish  and  Contemporary  Chronology  prom  597  to  165  b.c. 

Frontispiece 
The  Empires  of  Babylonia,  Persia,  and  Alexander 

to  face  page         1 
The  Jewish  Community  in  Palestine  during  the  Persian 
AND  Greek  Periods to  face  page      40 

The  Jerusalem  of  Nehemiah to  face  page    106 

Chronology  of  the  Maccabean  and  Roman  Periods 

to  face  page     186 
Palestine  DURING  the  Maccabean  Period to  face  page    194 


THE   EXILE  AND   THE    REVIVAL  OF  THE   JUDEAN 
COMMUNITY 

§  XCI.     THE  JEWS  IN  PALESTINE  AND  EGYPT 


How  the  Lord  hath  beclouded  in  his  anger  the  daughter  of  i.  je- 

Zion!  !irr'' 

He  hath  cast  down  from  heaven  to  earth  the  beauty  of  J"''^- 

Israel,  upon 

And  he  hath  not  kept  in  remembrance  his  footstool  in  the  iltm. 

day  of  his  anger.  2'-^) 

The  Lord  hath  swallowed  up  without  mercy  every  habitation 

of  Jacob, 
He  hath  thrown  down  in  his  wrath  the  strongholds  of  the 

daughter  of  Judah, 
He  hath  struck  to  the  ground,  he  hath  polluted  her  king  and 

her  princes. 
He  hath  cut  off  in  the  fierceness  of  his  anger  all  of  Israel's 

strength, 
He  hath  drawn  back  his  right  hand  from  before  the  enemy, 
He  hath  burnt  in  Jacob  like  a  flame,  which  devours  on  all 

sides. 
He  hath  bent  his  bow  as  an  enemy,  he  hath  stood  as  an 

adversary. 
He  hath  slain  all  the  desirable  men  in  the  tent  of  Zion, 
He  hath  poured  out  his  fury  as  fire  [on  the  daughter  of 

Judah]. 
The  Lord  hath  become  like  an  enemy,  he  hath  swallowed 

up  Israel, 
He  hath  swallowed  up  all  of  his  palaces,  he  hath  destroyed 

his  fortresses. 
And  he  hath  multiplied  in  the  daughter  of  Judah  sighing 

and  lamentation. 

1 


THE  JEWS  IN  PALESTINE  AND  EGYPT 

He  hath  torn  down  as  a  vine  his  dwelling,  he  hath  destroyed 

his  assembling  place, 
He  hath  caused  to  be  forgotten  in  Zion,  fast  day  and  sabbath, 
And  hath  spurned  in  his  indignant  anger,  king  and  priest. 
The  Lord  hath  rejected  his  altar,  he  hath  abhorred  his 

sanctuary. 
He  hath  given  up  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy  the  ark  of  the 

covenant, 
They  have  made  a  din  in  Jehovah's  house,  as  in  the  solemn 

feast  day. 

3. Upon  Jehovah  hath  determined  to  destroy  the  wall  of  Zion, 

He  hath  stretched  out  the  line,  he  hath  not  held  back  his 
hand  from  destroying. 

He  hath  made  rampart  and  wall  lament,  they  mourn  to- 
gether. 

Her  gates  have  sunk  into  the  ground,  he  hath  destroyed  her 
defences. 

Her  king  and  her  princes  are  among  the  heathen,  there  is 
no  law. 

Her  prophets  also  receive  from  Jehovah  no  vision. 

Silent,  upon  the  earth  sit  the  elders  of  Zion ; 

They  cast  dust  upon  their  heads ;  they  are  girded  with  sack- 
cloth ; 

With  heads  bowed  to  earth  are  the  daughters  of  Jerusalem. 

Remember,  0  Jehovah,  what  has  befallen  us, 
Look  and  see  our  disgrace. 
Our  inheritance  is  turned  over  to  aliens, 
Our  homes  belong  to  foreigners. 
We  are  orphans  and  fatherless, 
Our  mothers  are  like  widows. 
We  drink  our  water  for  money. 
Our  wood  comes  to  us  by  purchase. 
The  yoke  upon  our  necks  harasses  us, 
We  are  weary,  but  find  no  rest. 
We  have  given  the  hand  to  the  Egyptians, 
And  to  the  Assyrians,  that  we  might  be  sated  with  food. 
Our  fathers  sinned  and  are  no  more. 
While  we  bear  their  guilt. 

2 


THE  JEWS  IN  PALESTINE  AND  EGYPT 

Slaves  have  dominion  over  us,  s.  Piti- 

With  none  to  deliver  from  their  hand.  file  of 

We  get  our  bread  at  the  peril  of  our  lives,  ^vo™"^ 

Because  of  the  sword  of  the  wilderness.  c*-'^) 

Our  skin  becomes  hot  like  an  oven, 

Because  of  the  glowing  heat  of  famine. 

They  ravish  the  women  in  Zion, 

The  virgins  in  the  cities  of  Judah. 

Princes  are  hanged  up  by  the  hand- 

The  person  of  the  elders  is  not  honored. 

The  young  men  bear  up  the  mill, 

And  the  children  stumble  under  the  wood. 

The  elders  have  ceased  from  the  gate,  6.  The 

The  young  men  from  their  music.  con^.'" 

The  joy  of  our  heart  has  ceased,  ^f^^ 

Our  dance  is  turned  into  mourning.  judah's 

The  crown  has  fallen  from  our  head ;  proT-^"^ 

Woe  to  us !  for  we  have  sinned.  ^u.^s?" 

For  this  reason  our  heart  is  faint. 
For  these  causes  our  eyes  are  dim; 
For  the  mountain  of  Zion  is  desolate; 
The  jackals  walk  over  it. 

The  word  of  Jehovah  also  came  to  Jeremiah  in  Tah-  7.Pre- 
panhes,  saying,  Take  great  stones  in  thy  hand,  and  bury  ^\''^'°° 
them  in  the  loose  foundation  in  the  brick-covered  place  Egypt's 
before  Pharaoh's  palace  door  in  Tahpanhes  in  the  sight  of  guest 
the  men  of  Judah;   and  say  to  them,  'Thus  saith  Jehovah 
of  hosts,  the  God  of  Israel,  "Behold,  I  will  send  and  bring 
Nebuchadrezzar  the  king  of  Babylon,  my  servant,  and  will  "(JerT 
set  his  throne  upon  these  stones  that  you  have  buried,  and  '*"^'"*^ 
he  shall  spread  his  royal  pavilion  over  them.     And  he  shall 
come  and  shall  smite  the  land  of  Egypt;    such  as  are  for 
death  shall  be  given  to  death,  and  such  as  are  for  captivity 
shall  be  given  to  captivity,  and  such  as  are  for  the  sword 
shall  be  given  to  the  sword.     And  he  will  kindle  a  fire  in 
the  houses  of  the  gods  of  Egypt,  and  will  burn  them  and 
carry  them  away.     And  he  shall  wrap  himself  in  the  land 
of  Egypt,  as  a  shepherd  puts  on  his  mantle,  and  shall  go 

3 


by 
Nebu- 
chad- 
rezzar 


THE  JEWS  IN  PALESTINE  AND  EGYPT 

forth  from  there  in  peace.  He  shall  also  break  the  obelisks 
of  Heliopolis  and  the  temples  of  the  gods  of  Egypt  shall  he 
burn  with  fire."  ' 

The  word  that  came  to  Jeremiah  concerning  all  the  Jews 
who  dwelt  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  who  dwelt  at  Migdol,  Tah- 
panhes,  Memphis,  and  in  upper  Egypt,  saying,  Thus  saith 
Jehovah  of  hosts,  the  God  of  Israel,  *Ye  have  seen  all  the 
evil  that  I  have  brought  upon  Jerusalem  and  upon  all  the 
(44^1^*  cities  of  Judah ;  and  behold,  they  are  this  day  a  desolation, 
and  no  man  dwelleth  in  them,  because  of  their  wickedness 
which  they  have  committed  to  provoke  me  to  anger  in  that 
they  v/ent  to  offer  sacrifices  to  other  gods,  that  they  knew 
not,  neither  they  nor  ye,  nor  your  fathers.  However,  I 
constantly  sent  to  them  all  my  servants  the  prophets,  say- 
ing, "Oh,  do  not  this  abominable  thing  that  I  hate."  But 
they  neither  hearkened  nor  inclined  their  ear  to  turn  from 
their  wickedness,  to  offer  no  sacrifice  to  other  gods.  And 
so  my  wrath  and  mine  anger  was  poured  forth  and  was 
kindled  against  the  cities  of  Judah  and  the  streets  of  Jeru- 
salem, and  they  were  wasted  and  desolate,  as  is  now  the 
case.'  Therefore  now  thus  saith  Jehovah,  the  God  of  hosts, 
the  God  of  Israel,  'Why  do  you  commit  a  great  crime 
against  yourselves  to  cut  off  from  you  man  and  woman, 
infant  and  sucking  child,  out  of  the  midst  of  Judah  so  that 
ye  leave  none  remaining,  in  that  ye  provoke  me  to  anger 
with  the  work  of  your  hands,  offering  sacrifice  to  other  gods 
in  the  land  of  Egypt,  whither  ye  have  gone  to  sojourn,  that 
ye  may  be  cut  off,  and  that  ye  may  be  an  object  of  cursing 
and  a  reproach  among  all  the  nations  of  the  earth?  Have 
ye  forgotten  the  crimes  of  your  fathers,  and  the  crimes  of 
the  kings  of  Judah,  and  the  crimes  of  their  princes,  which 
they  committed  in  the  land  of  Judah  and  in  the  streets  of 
Jerusalem?  They  are  not  humbled  even  to  this  day,  neither 
have  they  feared  nor  walked  in  my  law  nor  in  my  statutes 
that  I  set  before  you  and  before  your  fathers. 
9.  Fate  'Therefore  thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts,  the  God  of  Israel: 
fnTthe  "Behold,  I  set  my  face  against  you  for  evil  to  cut  off  the  rem- 
^g^'in  nant  of  Judah  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  and  they  shall  fall  by 
Egypt  the  sword  and  by  famine;  they  shall  die,  small  and  great, 
^  and  they  shall  be  an  object  of  execration,  of  astonishment, 

4 


THE  DESTRUCTION  OF  THE  HEBREW  STATE 

of  cursing,  and  of  reproach.  For  I  will  punish  those  who 
dwell  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  as  I  have  punished  Jerusalem, 
by  the  sword,  by  famine,  and  by  pestilence,  so  that  none  of 
the  remnant  of  Judah,  who  have  gone  into  the  land  of 
Egypt  to  reside  there,  shall  escape  or  be  left  to  return  to 
the  land  of  Judah,  to  which  they  have  a  desire  to  return; 
for  none  shall  return  except  as  fugitives.  And  they  who 
escape  the  sword  shall  return  from  the  land  of  Egypt  to  the 
land  of  Judah,  few  in  number;  and  all  the  remnant  of  Judah, 
who  have  gone  into  the  land  of  Egypt  to  sojourn  there  shall 
know  whose  word  shall  be  confirmed,  mine  or  theirs." ' 

I.  The  Significance  of  the  Destruction  of  the  Hebrew  State. 

The  destruction  of  Jerusalem  in  586  B.C.  resulted  in  a  mighty  trans- 
formation of  the  life  and  thought  of  Israel.  It  marked  the  final  over- 
throw of  the  old  Hebrew  kingdoms,  and  the  gradual  rise  of  that  new 
and  important  factor  in  human  history  known  as  Judaism.  For  over 
three  centuries  the  Jews  who  survived  the  great  catastrophe  were 
helpless  under  the  rule  of  the  great  world  powers  which  in  succession 
conquered  southwestern  Asia.  For  the  great  majority  of  the  Jewish 
race  it  represented  the  beginning  of  that  long  exile  which  has  continued 
until  the  present.  Scattered  from  the  desert  of  Sahara  to  the  distant 
land  of  China,  and  from  the  Black  Sea  to  the  Indian  Ocean,  the  differ- 
ent groups  of  exiles  quickly  began  to  adapt  themselves  to  their  changed 
surroundings  and  to  absorb  the  new  knowledge  and  the  powerful  in- 
fluences which  gradually  transformed  their  beliefs  and  ideals.  While 
their  vision  was  vastly  broadened  by  this  contact,  the  danger  and  horror 
of  being  completely  engulfed  in  the  great  heathen  world  bound  the 
faithful  more  closely  together,  and  in  time  made  Judaism  the  solid, 
unbreakable  rock  that  has  withstood  the  assaults  and  the  disintegrat- 
ing forces  of  the  ages.  At  first  the  survivors  of  the  great  catastrophe 
were  stunned  by  the  blow  that  had  shattered  their  nation.  They  lived 
only  in  their  memories  of  the  past  and  in  their  hopes  for  the  future. 
At  last,  in  the  long  period  of  misery  and  enforced  meditation,  they  be- 
gan not  only  to  accept  but  also  to  apply  the  eternal  principles  pro- 
claimed by  their  earlier  prophets.  Thus  amidst  these  entirely  new 
conditions  they  gained  a  broader  and  deeper  faith  and  were  still  further 
trained  for  the  divine  task  of  teaching  mankind. 

II.  The  Book  of  Lamentations.     After  describing  the  destruction 
of  the  little  kingdom  established  at  Mizpah  under  Gedaliah,  the  Hebrew 

5 


THE  JEWS  IN  PALESTINE  AND  EGYPT 

historical  records  suddenly  become  silent.  This  silence  is  due  to  the 
fact  that  there  was  little  of  external  interest  to  record.  The  real  his- 
tory of  this  tragic  half-century  is  the  record  of  the  anguish  and  doubts 
and  hopes  in  the  hearts  of  the  scattered  remnants  of  the  race.  The 
little  book  of  Lamentations  expresses  dramatically  and  pathetically  the 
thoughts  of  the  people  as  they  meditated  upon  the  series  of  calamities 
which  gathered  about  the  great  catastrophe  of  586  B.C.  Like  the 
ancient  Torah,  or  five  books  of  the  Law,  it  contains  a  quintet  of  poems. 
These  are  very  similar  in  theme  and  form  to  many  of  the  psalms  of 
the  Psalter.  In  the  first  four  the  characteristic  five-beat  measure,  by 
which  the  deep  emotions,  especially  that  of  sorrow,  were  expressed,  is 
consistently  employed.  Each  of  these  four  is  also  an  acrostic,  that  is, 
each  succeeding  line  or  group  of  lines  begins  with  a  succeeding  letter  of 
the  Hebrew  alphabet.  This  acrostic  form  was  probably  adopted  in 
order  to  aid  the  memory,  and  suggests  that  from  the  first  these  poems 
were  written  to  be  used  in  public.  Even  so  the  Jews  of  Jerusalem 
to-day  chant  them  on  each  of  their  sabbaths  beside  the  foundation 
walls  of  the  great  platform  on  which  once  stood  their  ruined  temple. 
Although  the  artificial  character  of  these  poems  tends  to  check  the  free 
expression  of  thought  and  feeling,  it  is  possible  to  trace  in  them  a 
logical  progress  and  to  feel  the  influence  of  the  strong  emotions  that 
inspired  them. 

III.  Authorship  and  Date  of  the  Book.  In  theme  and  literary 
form  these  poems  are  so  strikingly  similar  to  Jeremiah's  later  sermons 
that  it  was  almost  inevitable  that  tradition  should  attribute  them  to 
the  great  prophet  of  Judah's  decline.  This  tradition,  to  which  is  due 
the  position  of  the  book  of  Lamentations  in  the  Greek  and  English 
Bibles,  cannot  be  traced  earlier  than  the  Greek  period.  The  evidence 
within  the  poems  themselves  strongly  indicates  that  they  were  not 
written  by  Jeremiah.  It  is  almost  inconceivable  that  he  would  subject 
his  poetic  genius  to  the  rigid  limitations  of  the  acrostic  structure.  More- 
over, he  would  never  have  spoken  of  the  weak  Zedekiah,  whose  vacil- 
lating policy  he  condemned,  in  the  terms  of  high  esteem  which  appear 
in  Lamentations  4'°.  These  poems  also  reflect  the  popular  interpre- 
tation of  the  great  national  calamity,  rather  than  Jeremiah's  search- 
ing analysis  of  fundamental  causes.  A  careful  study  of  Lamentations 
shows  that  chapters  2  and  4  were  probably  written  by  one  who  was 
powerfully  influenced  by  Ezekiel's  thought.  They  both  follow  in  their 
acrostic  structure  an  unusual  order  of  the  Hebrew  alphabet,  diff'ering 
in  this  respect  from  chapters  1  and  3.    They  have  so  many  close  points 

6 


AUTHORSHIP  AND  DATE  OF  LAMENTATIONS 

of  contact  with  each  other  that  it  is  safe  to  say  that  they  are  both  from 
the  same  author.  They  reveal  an  intimate  famiharity  with  events 
immediately  following  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  and  were  proba- 
bly written  between  580  and  561  B.C.,  when  Jehoiachin  was  liberated. 
Chapters  1  and  3  follow  the  regular  order  of  the  Hebrew  alphabet  and 
apparently  represent  the  work  of  a  later  author  or  authors.  Chapter  1 
is  full  of  pathos  and  religious  feeling  and  is  closely  parallel  in  thought 
to  such  psalms  as  42  and  137.  Chapter  3  is  a  poetic  monologue 
describing  the  fate  and  voicing  the  contrition  of  the  righteous  within 
the  Judean  community.  Chapter  5,  on  the  contrary,  is  in  the  three- 
beat  measure  and  lacks  the  acrostic  structure  of  the  preceding  chapters. 
Its  style  and  point  of  view  are  so  different  from  those  of  the  preceding 
chapters  that  it  must  be  the  work  of  another  author,  who  probably 
lived  in  the  Persian  period. 

IV.  Its  Real  Character.  The  purpose  of  the  book  of  Lamentations 
was  evidently,  (1)  to  give  appropriate  expression  to  the  feelings  of  the 
Jews  who  survived  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  586  B.C.;  (2)  to  drive 
home  the  great  lessons  taught  by  their  past  history,  and  thus  to  arouse 
true  repentance;  and  (3)  to  kindle  in  turn  hopes  regarding  their  future. 
Through  them  Jeremiah  and  Ezekiel  live  and  speak  again,  but  from 
the  point  of  view  of  the  people.  These  tragic  poems  also  throw  con- 
temporary light  upon  the  horrors  of  the  final  siege  and  capture  of 
Jerusalem  and  upon  the  fate  of  those  who  survived. 

V.  Numbers  and  Fortunes  of  the  Jews  Who  Remained  in  Pal- 
estine. The  Jews  actually  carried  into  captivity  constituted  only  a 
small  part  of  the  total  population  of  Judah  (r/.  §  XC')-  The  peasants 
and  the  inhabitants  of  the  towns  outside  Jerusalem  remained  undis- 
turbed, except  as  some  of  them  were  doubtless  drafted  into  the  army 
which  under  Zedekiah  undertook  to  defend  Jerusalem  against  the 
Chaldeans.  From  the  later  record  of  Nehemiah's  work  the  names  of 
many  of  these  towns  can  be  determined.  In  the  north  were  Jericho, 
Geba,  Mizpah,  Anathoth,  and  Kirjath-jearim;  in  the  centre,  Netophah 
and  Bethlehem;  and  in  the  south  Tekoa,  Keilah,  and  Bethzur.  The 
lot  of  these,  who  are  later  known  as  the  people  of  the  land,  was  pitiable 
indeed.  There  are  many  references  in  Lamentations  and  Ezekiel  to 
the  persecutions  to  which  they  were  subjected  by  their  malignant  foes,  the 
Moabites  and  Ammonites  on  the  east  and  the  Philistines  on  the  west. 
Even  more  cruel  and  aggressive  were  the  Edomites,  who  had  suffered 
many  wrongs  at  the  hands  of  the  Hebrews.  It  was  probably  about  this 
time  that  this  half-nomadic  people  began  to  be  driven  northward  by 

7 


THE  JEWS  IN  PALESTINE  AND  EGYPT 

the  advance  of  the  Nabateans,  an  Arab  people  who  came  from  the 
south.  Dislodged  from  their  homes,  the  Edomites  took  advantage  of 
the  weakness  of  the  Jews  and  seized  southern  Judah,  including  the 
ancient  capital  Hebron.  The  doom  which  Ezekiel  pronounces  upon 
the  Edomites  in  25'^  is  because  of  the  revenge  that  they  wreaked  upon 
the  Jews  at  this  time.  It  is  significant  that  Ezekiel's  sermons  in  the 
period  immediately  following  the  fall  of  Jerusalem  contain  dire  pre- 
dictions of  divine  vengeance  upon  all  these  foes.  After  the  overthrow 
of  Gedaliah's  kingdom,  the  Jews  who  remained  in  Palestine  appear 
to  have  been  left  wholly  without  defences  or  defenders.  Ezekiel,  in 
33^"-^  speaks  of  those  who  inhabit  the  waste  places  in  the  land  of 
Israel,  who  live  in  the  strongholds  and  the  caves.  Some  of  them  ap- 
pear to  have  turned  robbers.  Foreign  settlers  came  in  from  every 
side  and  in  time  intermarried  with  the  natives  and  led  them  into 
idolatry.     Ezekiel  sternly  condemns  their  immorality  and  apostasy. 

From  the  references  in  Jeremiah  41°  and  Ezra  3^  it  is  clear  that  even 
during  this  reign  of  terror  many  of  the  people  continued  to  offer  sacri- 
fices to  Jehovah  at  the  great  altar  cut  in  native  rock  which  stood  be- 
fore the  ruins  of  their  temple  in  Jerusalem.  Priests  were  also  doubt- 
less found  in  the  land  to  conduct  these  services.  The  ancient  feasts, 
however,  with  their  joyous  merrymaking  and  the  resulting  sense  of 
divine  favor,  were  no  longer  observed.  Instead,  the  people  celebrated 
in  sackcloth  and  ashes  the  fasts  commemorating  the  successive  stages 
in  the  destruction  of  their  city  (Zech.  T^').  While  their  lot  was  pitiable 
and  their  character  seemingly  unpromising,  these  people  of  the  land  were 
important  factors  in  the  re-establishment  of  the  Judean  community. 

VI.  Fortunes  of  the  Jews  in  Egypt.  The  narrative  in  Jeremiah 
states  definitely  that  the  large  proportion  of  those  who  had  rallied 
about  Gedaliah  after  his  death  found  a  temporary  asylum  on  the 
eastern  borders  of  Egypt.  Here  they  were  beyond  the  reach  of  Chal- 
dean armies  and  within  the  territory  of  the  one  nation  which  offered  a 
friendly  asylum  to  the  Jewish  refugees.  Most  of  this  later  group  of 
exiles  settled  at  the  towns  of  Tahpanhes  and  Migdol.  The  latter 
means  tower  and  is  probably  to  be  identified  with  an  eastern  outpost, 
the  chief  station  on  the  great  highway  which  ran  along  the  southeastern 
shore  of  the  Mediterranean  directly  to  Palestine  and  Syria. 

The  excavations  of  the  Egypt  Exploration  Fund  at  Tahpanhes, 
which  was  the  Daphnse  of  Herodotus,  has  thrown  much  light  upon  the 
home  of  this  Jewish  community.  The  town  was  situated  in  a  sandy 
desert  to  the  south  of  a  marshy  lake.     It  lay  midway  between  the  cul- 

8 


FORTUNES  OF  THE   JEWS  IN  EGYPT 

tivated  delta  on  the  west  and  what  is  now  the  Suez  Canal  on  the  east. 
Past  it  ran  the  main  highway  to  Palestine.  Its  founder,  Psamtik  I, 
the  great-grandfather  of  Hophra,  had  built  here  a  fort  to  guard  the 
highway.  Herodotus  states  that  he  also  stationed  guards  here,  and 
that  until  late  in  the  Persian  period  it  was  defended  by  garrisons  whose 
duty  was  to  repel  Asiatic  invasions  (II,  30).  Here  the  Ionian  and 
Carian  mercenaries,  who  were  at  this  time  the  chief  defence  of  the 
Egyptian  king,  were  given  permanent  homes.  By  virtue  of  its  mixed 
population  and  its  geographical  position,  Tahpanhes  was  a  great  meet- 
ing place  of  Eastern  and  Western  civilization.  Here  native  Egyptians, 
Greek  mercenaries,  Phoenician  and  Babylonian  traders,  and  Jewish  ref- 
ugees met  on  common  ground  and  lived  side  by  side.  It  corresponded 
in  these  respects  to  the  modern  Port  Said. 

Probably  in  remembrance  of  the  Jewish  colony  that  once  lived  here, 
the  ruins  of  the  fort  still  bear  an  Arab  name  which  means  The  Palace 
of  the  Jew's  Daughter.  The  term  palace  is  not  altogether  inappro- 
priate, for  apparently  the  fort  was  occasionally  used  as  a  royal  residence. 
Many  wine-jars,  bearing  the  seals  of  Psamtik,  Hophra,  and  Amasis, 
have  been  found  in  the  ruins.  In  the  northwestern  part  of  these  ruins 
has  been  uncovered  a  great  open-air  platform  of  brickwork,  referred  to 
in  Jeremiah  43*'°.  It  was  the  place  of  common  meeting  found  in  con- 
nection with  every  Egyptian  palace  or  private  home.  When  Amasis, 
in  564  B.C.,  came  to  the  throne  of  Egypt  he  withdrew  the  privileges 
granted  by  his  predecessors  to  foreigners.  The  Greek  colonists  were 
transferred  to  Naukratis,  and  Tahpanhes  lost  most  of  its  former  glory. 
About  this  time,  if  not  before,  the  great  majority  of  the  Jewish  refugees, 
who  had  settled  in  these  frontier  towns,  probably  returned  to  Palestine 
to  find  homes  in  its  partially  depopulated  towns. 

Ezekiel  from  distant  Babylon  appears  to  have  regarded  the  Jews 
in  Egypt  with  considerable  hope  (Ezek.  29^').  But  Jeremiah,  who 
knew  them  better,  was  keenly  alive  to  their  faults.  In  their  despair 
and  rage  many  of  them  evidently  rejected  the  teachings  of  the  prophets 
and  became  devotees  of  the  Aramean  goddess,  the  Queen  of  Heaven, 
mentioned  in  the  recently  discovered  Aramean  inscription  of  Zakar, 
king  of  Hazrak  (c/.  §  LXV*").  Jeremiah's  closing  words  to  them, 
therefore,  are  denunciations  and  predictions  that  they  should  suffer 
even  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  at  the  hand  of  Nebuchadrezzar,  the  same 
fate  that  had  overtaken  their  fellow-countrymen  at  Jerusalem.  Both 
Jeremiah  and  Ezekiel  (Ezek.  30)  predicted  that  Nebuchadrezzar  would 
invade  and  conquer  Egypt.     In  568  b.c.  his  army  actually  did  appear 

9 


THE  JEWS  IN  PALESTINE  AND  EGYPT 

on  the  borders  of  Egypt;  but  how  far  he  succeeded  in  conquering  the 
land  is  unknown.  The  complete  conquest  of  Egypt  certainly  did 
not  come  until  the  Persian  period  under  the  leadership  of  the  crue' 
Cambyses. 

VII.  The  Jewish  Colony  at  Elephantine.  Jeremiah  and  Ezekiel 
also  refer  to  the  Jewish  colonists  at  Memphis  and  at  Pathros,  which  is 
the  biblical  designation  of  upper  Egj-pt.  jNIany  of  the  colonists  who 
had  settled  there  had  doubtless  fled  before  the  conquests  of  Jerusalem. 
The  presence  of  a  great  number  of  Jews  in  Egypt  at  a  later  period  in- 
dicates that  even  at  this  early  date  more  exiles  were  probably  to  be  found 
in  Egj'pt  than  in  Babylon.  Recent  discoveries  on  the  island  of  Ele- 
phantine in  the  upper  Nile,  opposite  the  modern  Assuan,  have  thrown 
new  light  upon  the  life  of  these  Jewish  colonists.  These  records  con- 
sist (1)  of  a  series  of  beautifully  preserved  legal  documents  written  in 
Aramaic  on  papyrus  and  definitely  dated  between  the  years  471  and 
411  B.C.  They  include  contracts  between  the  Jews  residing  on  the 
island  of  Elephantine  regarding  the  transfer  of  property  and  other 
legal  transactions.  They  contain  many  familiar  Jewish  names,  such 
as  Zadok,  Isaiah,  Hosea,  Nathan,  Ethan,  Zechariah,  Shallum,  Uriah, 
and  Shemaiah.  They  indicate  that  by  the  earlier  part  of  the  Persian 
period  a  large  and  wealthy  colony  of  Jewish  traders  and  bankers  was 
established  on  this  island.  They  appear  to  have  lived  in  a  community 
by  themselves,  but  in  the  heart  of  the  city,  side  by  side  with  Egyptians, 
Persians,  Babylonians,  Phoenicians,  and  Greeks,  whose  property  in 
some  cases  joined  their  own.  The  Jews  had  their  own  court  which 
ranked  equally  with  the  Persian  and  Egyptian  law  courts.  Even 
native  Egyptians,  who  had  cases  against  the  Jews,  appeared  before 
it.  The  names  of  Arameans  and  x\rabs  also  appear  in  its  lists  of  wit- 
nesses. From  these  contemporary  documents  it  is  clear  that  the  Jews 
of  upper  Egypt  enjoyed  great  privileges  and  entered  freely  into  the  life 
of  the  land.  Ordinarily  they  married  members  of  their  own  race; 
but  the  marriage  of  a  Jewess  with  a  foreigner  is  also  reported.  He 
appears,  however,  to  have  been  a  proselyte  to  Judaism.  Another  Jew- 
ess married  an  Egyptian  and  took  oath  by  the  Egyptian  goddess  Sati, 
suggesting  that  she  had  nominally  at  least  adopted  the  religion  of  her 
husband.  One  Hebrew  also  bears  the  suggestive  name  of  Hosea, 
the  son  of  Petikhnum  (an  Egyptian  name  meaning  Gift  of  the  god 
Khnum). 

Vni.  The  Temple  of  Yahu  at  Elephantine.  These  Aramaic  legal 
documents  also  contain  many  references  to  Yahu  (the  older  form  of 

10 


THE  TEMPLE  OF  YAHU  AT  ELEPHANTINE 

Yahweh  or  Jehovah),  the  god  worshipped  by  the  Jews,  and  to  Yahu's 
temple  situated  on  King's  Street,  one  of  the  main  thoroughfares  of 
the  city.  These  references  have  been  signally  confirmed  by  a  most 
remarkable  letter  recently  discovered  by  the  Germans  at  this  site.  It 
was  written  in  November  of  the  year  408  B.C.,  by  the  members  of  the 
Jewish  colony  at  Elephantine  to  Bagohi  (the  Bagoas  of  Josephus),  the 
Persian  governor  of  Judah.  It  states,  among  other  things,  that  "Al- 
ready in  the  days  of  the  kings  of  Egypt  our  fathers  had  built  this  temple 
in  the  fortress  of  Elephantine.  And  when  Cambyses  (529-522  B.C.) 
entered  Egyjit  he  found  this  temple  built,  and,  though  the  temple  of 
the  gods  of  Egypt  were  all  at  that  time  overthrown,  no  one  injured 
anything  in  this  temple."  It  further  states  that  recently  (in  the  year 
411  B.C.),  in  the  absence  of  the  Persian  governor  in  Egvpt,  the  foreigners 
in  Elephantine  had  stirred  up  a  certain  minor  ofRcial  to  instruct  his 
son,  who  was  commander  of  a  neighboring  fortress,  to  destroy  the 
Jewish  temple. 

The  Aramaic  letter  was  intended  to  be  sent,  together  with  rich  gifts, 
to  influence  the  powerful  Persian  governor  of  Judah,  Bagohi,  to  issue 
an  order  permitting  the  Jews  to  rebuild  their  temple.  From  this  letter 
we  learn  that  the  temple  of  the  God  Yahu  was  built  of  hewn  stone  with 
pillars  of  stone  in  front,  probably  similar  to  those  in  the  Egyptian 
temples,  and  had  seven  great  gates  built  of  hewn  stone  and  provided 
with  doors  and  bronze  hinges.  Its  roof  was  wholly  of  cedar  wood, 
probably  brought  from  the  distant  Lebanon,  and  its  walls  appear  to 
have  been  ceiled  or  adorned  with  stucco,  as  were  those  of  Solomon's 
temple.  It  was  also  equipped  with  bowls  of  gold  and  silver  and  the 
other  paraphernalia  of  sacrifice.  Here  were  regularly  offered  cereal- 
offerings,  burnt-offerings,  and  frankincense.  The  petitioners  also 
promised  that,  if  the  Persian  ofliicials  would  grant  their  request,  "we 
will  also  offer  cereal-offerings  and  frankincense  and  burnt-offerings  on 
the  altar  in  your  name,  and  we  will  pray  to  God  in  your  name,  we  and 
our  wives  and  all  the  Jews  who  are  here,  if  you  do  thus  until  the  temple 
is  built.  And  you  shall  have  a  portion  before  the  God  Yahu,  the  God 
of  Heaven,  from  every  one  who  offers  to  him  burnt-offerings  and 
sacrifices." 

Historical  students  have  long  been  familiar  with  the  fact  that  late  in 
the  Greek  period  the  Jews  of  Egypt  built  a  temple  to  Jehovah  at  Leon- 
topolis,  in  the  Delta  {cf.  §  CXV'");  but  these  recent  discoveries  open 
an  entirely  new  chapter  in  Jewish  history.  They  indicate  that  prob- 
ably within  a  generation  after  the  destruction  of  the  Jerusalem  temple, 

11 


EZEKIEL'S  MESSAGE 

in  586  B.C.,  the  Jewish  colonists  in  Egypt  built  for  themselves  far  up 
the  Nile,  and  possibly  at  other  points  in  this  land  of  their  exile,  a  temple 
or  temples  to  Jehovah;  that  they  remained  loyal  to  God  and  the  insti- 
tutions of  their  race;  and  that  in  the  midst  of  cosmopolitan  Egypt  they 
preserved  intact  their  racial  unity.  In  the  light  of  these  discoveries  it 
is  also  clear  that  because  of  their  character  and  numbers  and  nearness 
to  Palestine  the  Jews  of  Egypt,  even  at  this  early  period,  were  a  far 
more  important  factor  in  the  life  and  development  of  Judaism  than 
they  have  hitherto  been  considered.  These  discoveries  also  afford 
definite  grounds  for  the  hope  that  from  this  unexpected  quarter  much 
more  valuable  material  will  come  to  illumine  this  otherwise  dark  period 
of  post-exilic  Jewish  history. 


§XCII.     EZEKIEL'S   MESSAGE   TO   HIS   SCATTERED 
COUNTRYMEN 

The  hand  of  Jehovah  was  upon  me,  and  he  brought  me 
by  the  spirit  and  set  me  down  in  the  midst  of  the  valley; 
and  it  was  full  of  bones.  And  he  caused  me  to  pass  by  them 
round  about;  and,  behold,  there  were  very  many  on  the 
surface  of  the  valley ;  and,  lo,  they  were  very  dry.  And  he 
said  to  me.  Son  of  man,  can  these  bones  live?  And  I  an- 
swered, 0  Lord  Jehovah,  thou  knowest.  Again  he  said  to 
me.  Prophesy  over  these  bones,  and  say  to  them,  0  ye  dry 
bones,  hear  the  word  of  Jehovah.  *  Thus  saith  Jehovah  to 
these  bones:  '^Behold  I  am  about  to  put  breath  into  you, 
that  ye  may  live.  And  I  will  put  sinews  on  you,  and  will 
clothe  you  with  flesh,  and  cover  you  with  skin,  and  put 
breath  in  you,  that  ye  may  live;  and  know  that  I  am 
Jehovah."  ' 

Re-  So  I  prophesied  as  he  commanded  me :  and  as  I  prophesied, 
there  was  an  earthquake;  and  the  bones  came  together, 
bone  to  its  bone.  And  I  beheld,  and,  lo,  there  were  sinews 
upon  them,  and  flesh  had  clothed  them,  and  skin  covered 
them;  but  there  was  no  breath  in  them.  Then  he  said  to 
me.  Prophesy  to  the  breath,  prophesy,  son  of  man,  and  say 
to  the  breath,  'Thus  saith  Jehovah:  "Come  from  the  four 
winds,  0  breath,  and  breathe  upon  these  slain,  that  they 
may  live."  '     So  I  prophesied  as  he  commanded  me,  and 

12 


of  the 
nation 


EZEKIEL'S  MESSAGE 

the  breath  came  into  them,  and  they  lived,  and  stood  upon 
their  feet,  an  exceedingly  great  host. 

Then  he  said  to  me,  0  man,  these  bones  are  the  whole  3.  Sym 
house  of  Israel ;  behold,  they  say,  *  Our  bones  are  dried  up,  o^'ihe 
and  our  hope  is  lost;  we  are  completely  ruined.'  There-  If'l^f 
fore  prophesy,  and  say  to  them,  '  Thus  saith  Jehovah : 
"  Behold,  I  will  open  your  graves,  and  raise  you  from  your 
graves,  0  my  people;  and  I  will  bring  you  into  the  land  of 
Israel.  And  ye  shall  knov/  that  I  am  Jehovah,  when  I  have 
opened  your  graves,  and  raised  you  from  your  graves,  O 
my  people.  And  I  will  put  my  spirit  in  you,  that  ye  may 
live,  and  I  will  restore  you  to  your  own  land:  that  ye  may 
know  that  I,  Jehovah,  have  spoken  it  and  performed  it," 
is  the  oracle  of  Jehovah.' 

This  word  also  came  to  me  from  Jehovah:    Do  thou,  4. 
0  man,  take  a  stick,  and  write  upon  it,  JUDAH  AND  THE  u^^^he 
ISRAELITES   ASSOCIATED   WITH   HIM:    then   take   another  8°ut»i- 
stick,  and  write  upon   it,    JOSEPH,  AND  ALL  THE  HOUSE  north- 
OF    ISRAEL    ASSOCIATED    WITH    HIM.     Then    join    them  fs™  el- 
together,  so  that  they  may  become  one  stick  in  thy  hand,  '.^f^ 
And  when  the  children  of  thy  people  shall  say  to  thee, 
'Wilt  thou  not  show  us  what  this  means?'  say  to  them, 
'Thus  saith  Jehovah:   "Behold,  I  am  about  to  take  the 
stick  of  Joseph,  which  is  in  the  hand  of  Ephraim,  and  the 
tribes  of  Israel  associated  with  him;  and  I  will  unite  them 
with  the  stick  of  Judah,  and  make  them  one  stick,  and  they 
shall  be  united  in  my  hand."  '     And  let  the  sticks  on  which 
thou  writest  be  in  thy  hand  before  their  eyes.     And  say  to 
them,  '  Thus  saith  the  Lord  Jehovah:  "  Behold,  I  am  about 
to  take  the  Israelites  from  among  the  nations,  whither  they 
are  gone,  and  gather  them  from  all  sides,  and  bring  them 
into  their  own  land :  and  I  will  make  them  one  nation  in  the 
land,  upon  the  mountains  of  Israel ;  and  there  shall  be  one 
king  over  them  all ;  and  they  shall  be  no  longer  two  nations, 
neither  shall  they  be  divided  into  two  kingdoms  any  longer; 
nor  shall  they  defile  themselves  any  more  with  their  idols, 
nor  with  their  detestable  things,  nor  with  any  of  their  trans- 
gressions;   but  I  will  save  them  from  all  their  apostasies 
wherein  they  have  sinned,  and  will  cleanse  them;  so  shall 
they  be  my  people,  and  I  will  be  their  God. 

13 


EZEKIEL'S  MESSAGE 

«.  Re-        And  my  servant  David  shall  be  king  over  them ;  and  they 
SfThe     all  shall  have  one  shepherd:    they  shall  also  walk  in  mine 
cove-      ordinances,  and  observe  my  statutes,  and  do  them.     And 
under     they  shall  dwell  in  the  land  that  I  have  given  to  my  servant 
viciic"     Jacob,  wherein  their  fathers  dwelt;    and  they  shall  dwell 
^ol'l'"j      therein,  they  and  their  sons,  forever.    And  David  my  ser- 
vant shall  be  their  prince  forever.     Moreover  I  will  make  a 
covenant  of  peace  with  them;    it  shall  be  an  everlasting 
covenant  with  them;   and  I  will  establish  them,  and  multi- 
ply them,  and  set  my  sanctuary  in  the  midst  of  them  for- 
evermore.     My  dwelling  place   also   shall  be  with   them; 
and  I  will  be  their  God,  and  they  shall  be  my  people.     And 
the  nations  shall  know  that  I  am  Jehovah  who  sanctifieth 
Israel,  when  my  sanctuary  shall  be  in  the  midst  of  them 
forevermore."  ' 

6.  Eze-  In  the  twenty-fifth  year  of  our  captivity,  in  the  beginning 
vision  ^^  the  year,  in  the  tenth  day  of  the  month,  in  the  fourteenth 
(40'  0     year  after  the  city  was  taken,  on  that  very  day,  the  hand  of 

Jehovah  was  laid  upon  me,  and  he  brought  me  in  an  in- 
spired vision  to  the  land  of  Israel,  and  set  me  down  upon  a 
very  high  mountain,  on  which  was  a  city-like  building 
toward  the  south.  Thither  he  brought  me,  and  there  was 
a  man  whose  appearance  was  like  the  appearance  of  bronze, 
with  a  flaxen  line  and  a  measuring  reed  in  his  hand;  and 
he  was  standing  in  the  gateway.  And  the  man  said  to  me. 
Son  of  man,  behold  with  thine  eyes,  and  hear  with  thine 
ears,  and  give  heed  to  all  that  I  shall  show  thee;  for,  in 
order  that  thou  shouldst  be  shown  it  wert  thou  brought 
hither ;  declare  all  that  thou  seest  to  the  house  of  Israel. 

7.  En-  There  was  a  wail  encircling  a  temple,  and  in  the  man's 
wlu'w    ^^'^'^  3.  measuring  reed  six  cubits  long,  each  cubit  being 

equal  to  about  twenty-one  inches.  And  he  measured  the 
thickness  of  the  building  one  reed  (about  ten  and  one-half 
feet) ;  and  the  height  one  reed. 

Then  he  came  to  the  east  gateway  and  went  up  its  steps 
and  measured  the  threshold  of  the  gate  one  reed  wide. 
And  each  guard-room  was  one  reed  long,  and  one  reed 
broad;  and  between  the  guard-rooms  were  spaces  of  five 
cubits ;  and  the  threshold  of  the  gate  at  the  vestibule  of  the 
gate  on  the  inner  side  was  one  reed.     Then  he  measured  the 

14 


EZEKIEL'S  MESSAGE 

vestibule  of  the  gate,  eight  cubits,  and  its  jambs,  two  cubits ; 
and  the  vestibule  of  the  gate  was  on  the  inner  side.  And 
the  guard-rooms  of  the  east  gate  were  three  on  each  side; 
and  all  three  were  of  the  same  dimensions;  and  the  posts 
were  on  both  sides.  And  he  measured  the  breadth  of  the 
entrance  to  the  gateway,  ten  cubits;  and  the  width  of  the 
gate,  thirteen  cubits;  and  there  was  a  sill  one  cubit  wide, 
before  the  guard-rooms  on  each  side ;  and  the  guard-rooms, 
six  cubits  on  both  sides. 

And  he  measured  the  gate  from  the  outer  wall  of  the  one  9 
guard-room  to   the   outer  wall  of  the  other,   twenty-five 
cubits  wide  [about  forty-four  feet];    door   opposite    door,  o^t^e 
And  from  the  front  of  the  gateway  at  the  entrance  to  the  way 
front  of  the  inner  vestibule  of  the  gate  were  fifty  cubits.  ^'^'  "^ 

Then  he  brought  me  to  the  outer  court,  and  there  were  10. 
chambers  and  a  pavement  made  round  about   the   court;  ^ou*rt^ 
thirty  chambers  were  upon  the  pavement.     And  he  measured  ^l^\^ 
its  breadth  from  the  front  of  the  lower  gate  to  the  front  of  ("• ") 
the  inner  court  without,  one  hundred  cubits  on  the  east  and 
on  the  north. 

And  the  north  gateway  of  the  outer  court,  he  measured  ^^ 
its  length  and  breadth.     And  its  measurements  were  the  ga^te^"^ 
same  as  those  of  the  east  gateway.     The  dimensions  of 
the   gateway  on    the  south  were    also   the  same  as  the  "'') 
others. 

He  brought  me  outside  the  gate  and  into  the  inner  court,   12. 
and  there  were  two  chambers  on  the  inner  court,  one  by  the  here™' 
north  gate,  facing  the  south,  and  the  other  by  the    south  ^^l^^^ 
gate,  facing  the  north.     And  he  said  to  me.  This  chamber  tering 
which  faces  the  south  is  for  the  priests  who  have  charge  of 
the  temple;   and  the  chamber  which  faces  the  north  is  for 
the  priests  who  have   charge  of  the  altar;    they  are  the 
sons  of  Zadok,  those  of  the  sons  of  Levi  who  may  be  near  to 
Jehovah  to  serve  him.     And  he  measured  the  court,  a  hun- 
dred cubits  wide,  and  a  hundred  cubits  broad — a  perfect 
square.     The  altar  was  in  front  of  the  temple. 

Then  he  brought  me  into  the  hall  of  the  temple  and    13 
measured  the  jambs,   six  cubits  on  each  side.     And   the 
breadth  of  the  entrance  was  ten  cubits;    and  the  sides  of   *4i'.») 
the  entrance  were  five  cubits  on  each  side ;  and  he  measured 
its  length,  forty  cubits;  and  its  width,  twenty  cubits. 

15 


Dimen* 

sions 


wavs 

(20,   21b, 


priests 


Main 
hall 


EZEKIEL'S  MESSAGE 

Then  he  went  into  the  inner  room  and  measured  the 
jambs  of  its  entrance,  two  cubits;  and  the  entrance,  six 
cubits;  and  the  side-walls  of  the  entrance,  seven  cubits  on 
each  side.  And  he  measured  its  length,  twenty  cubits,  and 
its  breadth,  twenty  cubits,  before  the  hall  of  the  temple. 
And  he  said  to  me.  This  is  the  most  holy  place. 

Then  he  measured  the  thickness  of  the  wall  of  the  temple, 
six  cubits ;  and  the  width  of  the  side-chambers,  four  cubits, 
round  about  the  temple  on  every  side.  And  the  side- 
chambers  were  in  three  stories,  one  above  another,  and 
thirty  in  each  story;  and  there  were  abatements  all  around 
the  walls  of  the  temple  that  the  side-chambers  might  be 
fastened  to  them  and  not  to  the  walls  of  the  temple.  And 
the  side-chambers  became  wider  as  they  went  up  higher 
and  higher,  for  the  temple  grew  narrower  higher  up;  and 
there  was  an  ascent  from  the  lowest  story  to  the  highest 
through  the  middle  story.  And  I  saw  also  that  the  temple 
had  a  raised  platform  round  about. 

Then  he  brought  me  to  the  east  gate.  And  behold  the 
glory  of  the  God  of  Israel  came  from  the  east ;  and  his  voice 
was  like  the  sound  of  many  waters;  and  the  earth  shone 
with  his  glory.  And  the  vision  which  I  saw  was  like  that 
which  I  saw  when  he  came  to  destroy  the  city;  and  the 
visions  were  like  that  which  I  saw  by  the  River  Chebar; 
and  I  fell  on  my  face.  Then  the  glory  of  Jehovah  came 
into  the  temple  through  the  east  gate.  And  the  spirit  took 
me  up,  and  brought  me  into  the  inner  court;  and,  behold, 
the  glory  of  Jehovah  filled  the  temple. 

Then  I  heard  One  speaking  to  me  from  the  temple,  as  he 
stood  by  me.  And  he  said  to  me,  0  man,  this  is  the  place 
of  my  throne,  and  the  place  for  the  soles  of  my  feet,  where 
I  will  dwell  in  the  midst  of  the  Israelites  forever.  And  the 
house  of  Israel,  they  and  their  kings,  shall  no  more  defile 
my  holy  name  with  their  idolatry  and  with  the  corpses  of 
their  kings  by  placing  their  thresholds  by  my  threshold, 
and  their  door-posts  by  my  door-post,  with  only  a  wall  be- 
tween me  and  them,  thus  defiling  my  holy  name  by  the 
abominations  which  they  have  committed ;  therefore  I  have 
destroyed  them  in  mine  anger.  Now  let  them  put  away 
their  idolatry,  and  the  corpses  of  their  kings  far  from  me^ 
that  I  may  dwell  in  the  midst  of  them  forever. 

16 


ancient 
sanctu- 
aries 
(443-n) 


EZEKIEL'S  MESSAGE 

Therefore  thus  saith  the  Lord  Jehovah,  *No  foreigner,  is. 
consecrated  neither  in  heart  nor  flesh,  of  all  the  foreigners  ^f"tVil^ 
who  are  among  the  Israelites,  shall  enter  my  sanctuary,  priesta 
But  those  Levites  who  went  far  from  me,  when  Israel  went  th°e"^ 
astray,  who  went  astray  from  me  after  their  idols,  shall 
bear  their  guilt.     Yet  they  shall  be  ministers  in  my  sanctu- 
ary, having  oversight  at  the  gates  of  the  temple,  and  min- 
istering in  the  temple;  they  shall  slay  the  burnt-offering 
and  the  sacrifice  for  the  people,  and  they  shall  stand  before 
them  and  minister  to  them.     Since  they  were  wont  to  min- 
ister to  them  before  their  idols  and  were  a  stumbling  block 
of  iniquity  to  the  house  of  Israel ;  therefore  I  have  taken  a 
solemn  oath  against  them,*  is  the  oracle  of  the  Lord  Jehovah, 
'and  they  shall  bear  their  guilt.     And  they  shall  not  ap- 
proach me  to  act  as  priests  to  me,  so  as  to  come  near  any  of 
my  sacred  things,  or  to  those  which  are  most  sacred;   but 
they  shall  bear  their  shame  and  the  punishment  for  the 
abominations  which  they  have  committed;    I  will  make 
them  responsible  for  the  care  of  the  temple,  for  all  its  ser- 
vice, and  for  all  that  shall  be  done  therein. 

But  the  priests,  the  Levites,  the  sons  of  Zadok,  who  took  19 
charge  of  my  sanctuary  when  the  Israelites  went  astray 
from  me,  shall  come  near  to  me  to  minister  to  me,  and  they 
shall  stand  before  me  to  offer  to  me  fat  and  blood,'  is  the  Jem 
oracle  of  the  Lord  Jehovah.     'They  shall  enter  my  sanct 
uary,  and  they  shall  approach  near  to  my  table  to  minister  ^"' ") 
to  me,  and  they  shall  keep  my  charge. 

And  they  shall  teach  my  people  the  difference  between  20.  as 
the  sacred  and  the  common,  and  instruct  them  how  to  dis-  §i!fng 
cern  between  the  clean  and  the  unclean.     And  in  a  contro-  f  '^e 
versy  they  shall  act  as  judges,  judging  it  according  to  my  a^nT 
ordinances.     And  they  shall  keep  my  laws  and  my  statutes  "3,"^) 
in  all  my  appointed  feasts;    and  they  shall  maintain  the 
sanctity  of  my  sabbaths.'  Appor- 

When  ye  allot  the  land  as  inheritance,  ye  shall  offer  as  J^o^-^. 
a  special  gift  to  Jehovah,  a  sacred  portion  of  the  land,  five  SThe 
thousand  cubits  long,  and  twenty  thousand  cubits  wide ;   it  loathe 
shall  be  sacred  throughout  its  entire  extent.     And  out  of  ^^'J'J^I 
this  area  shalt  thou  measure  off  a  space  twenty-five  thou-  minis. 
sand  cubits  long  and  ten  thousand  cubits  wide,  and  on  it  (451  s) 

17 


Duties 
of  the 
sons 
of  the 


salem 
priests 


prince 

(6-8) 


EZEKIEL'S  MESSAGE 

shall  the  most  holy  sanctuary  stand.  It  is  a  holy  portion 
of  the  land ;  it  shall  belong  to  the  priests  who  are  the  min- 
isters in  the  sanctuary,  who  draw  near  to  minister  to  Jehovah ; 
and  it  shall  be  a  place  for  their  houses,  and  an  open  space 
for  the  sanctuary.  Out  of  this  a  square  of  five  hundred 
cubits  shall  be  for  the  sanctuary,  with  an  open  space  fifty 
cubits  wide  around  it.  And  a  space  twenty-five  thousand 
cubits  long  and  ten  thousand  wide  shall  belong  to  the 
Levites,  the  ministers  of  the  temple;  it  shall  be  their  pos- 
session for  cities  in  which  to  dwell. 
22.  To  And  as  the  possession  of  the  city,  ye  shall  assign  a  space 
and''"^^  five  thousand  cubits  wide,  and  twenty-five  thousand  long, 
beside  the  sacred  reservation;  it  shall  belong  to  the  whole 
house  of  Israel.  And  the  prince  shall  have  the  space  on 
both  sides  of  the  sacred  reservation  and  the  possession  of 
the  city,  on  the  west  and  on  the  east,  and  of  the  same  length 
as  one  of  the  portions  of  the  tribes,  from  the  west  border  to 
the  east  border  of  the  land.  It  shall  be  his  possession  in 
Israel;  and  the  princes  of  Israel  shall  no  more  oppress  my 
people,  but  shall  give  the  land  to  the  house  of  Israel  accord- 
ing to  their  tribes. 

I.  The  Home  of  the  Exiles  in  Babylon.  From  the  references  in 
the  contemporary  writers  it  is  possible  to  gain  a  reasonably  definite 
idea  regarding  the  environment  of  the  Jewish  exiles  in  Babylon.  Eze- 
kiel  describes  the  site  as  "a  land  of  traffic,  a  city  of  merchants,  a  fruitful 
soil,  and  beside  many  waters,"  where  the  colony  like  a  willow  was  trans- 
planted (17^).  The  Kabaru  Canal  (the  River  Chebar  of  Ezekiel)  ran 
southeast  from  Babylon  to  Nippur  through  a  rich  alluvial  plain,  inter- 
sected by  numerous  canals.  Beside  it  lived  a  dense  agricultural  popu- 
lation. On  the  tells  or  artificial  mounds  made  by  the  ruins  of  earlier 
Babylonian  cities  were  built  the  peasant  villages.  Ezekiel  speaks  of 
preaching  to  the  Jewish  colony  of  Tel-Abib  (Storm-hill),  and  the  lists 
of  those  who  later  returned  to  Judah  contain  references  to  those  who 
came  from  Tel-Melah  (Salt-hill)  and  Tel-Harsha  (Forest-hill). 

II.  Their  Condition  and  Occupations.  It  is  probable  that  these 
mounds  were  not  far  from  each  other  and  that  the  adjacent  fields  were 
cultivated  by  the  Jewish  colonists.  Thus  they  were  enabled,  under 
even  more  favorable  conditions  than  in  Judah,  to  continue  in  their  old 
occupations  and  to  build  houses  and  rear  families  as  Jeremiah  had 

18 


CONDITION  AND  OCCUPATIONS  OF  THE  EXILES 

advised  (Jer.  29;  §  LXXXVIP^).  In  Babylonia,  as  at  Elephantine, 
so  long  as  they  paid  the  imperial  tax  and  refrained  from  open  violence 
they  were  probably  allowed  to  rule  themselves  in  accordance  with  their 
own  laws.  The  elders  of  the  different  families  directed  the  affairs  of 
the  community  and  acted  as  judges,  except  in  the  case  of  capital  offences 
which  were  punished  in  the  name  of  Nebuchadrezzar  (Jer.  29").  Thus 
for  a  long  time  the  exiles  constituted  a  little  Judah  within  the  heart  of 
the  Babylonian  empire,  maintaining  their  racial  integrity  even  more 
completely  than  the  Jews  resident  in  Egypt. 

Babylonia  was  the  scene  of  an  intense  commercial  activity.  The 
opportunities  and  allurements  of  the  far-reaching  traffic  which  passed 
up  and  down  the  great  rivers  and  across  the  neighboring  deserts  were 
eventually  too  strong  for  the  Jews  to  resist.  Hence  in  Babylonia,  as 
in  Egypt,  they  gradually  abandoned  their  inherited  agricultural  habits 
and  were  transformed  into  a  nation  of  traders.  In  the  recently  dis- 
covered records  of  the  transactions  of  the  famous  Babylonian  banking 
house  which  flourished  during  the  earlier  part  of  the  Persian  period, 
under  the  direction  of  succeeding  generations  of  the  Murashr.  family, 
are  found  many  familiar  Jewish  names.  These  indicate  that  within  a 
century  after  the  fall  of  Jerusalem  many  sons  of  the  exiles  had  already 
won  a  prominent  place  in  the  commercial  life  of  that  great  metropolis. 

III.  Their  Religious  Life.  With  this  transformation  in  their  occu- 
pation came  a  great  temptation  to  forget  their  race  and  to  lose  sight  of 
its  ideals.  The  temptation  was  all  the  greater  because  their  capital 
city  and  temple  were  in  ruins  and  the  belief  was  widely  held  that  Jeho- 
vah had  forsaken  his  land  and  people  and  retired  to  his  "mount  in  the 
uttermost  parts  of  the  north"  (Is.  14"  Ezek.  V).  Their  actual  ex- 
periences had  proved  so  fundamentally  different  from  their  hopes  that 
there  was  undoubtedly  in  the  minds  of  many  a  dread  doubt  as  to  whether 
Jehovah  was  able  to  fulfil  his  promises.  False  prophets  were  also 
present  to  mislead  the  people  (Jer.  39^'-^  Ezek.  13'-'  W'^").  There 
is  also  no  indication  that  the  Jews  of  Babylon  ever  attempted  to  build 
a  temple  to  Jehovah  in  the  land  of  their  captivity.  Hence  there  were 
no  ancient  festivals  and  public  and  private  sacrifices  and  impressive 
ceremonials  to  kindle  their  religious  feelings  and  to  keep  alive  their 
national  faith.  Instead,  the  imposing  religion  of  the  Babylonians, 
with  its  rich  temples,  its  many  festivals,  its  prosperous  and  powerful 
priesthood,  and  its  elaborate  ritual  must  have  profoundly  impressed 
them  and  led  them  to  draw  unfavorable  comparisons  between  it  and 
the  simple  services  of  their  pre-exilic  temple.     Nevertheless,  in  spite  of 

19 


EZEKIEL'S  MESSAGE 

these  temptations,  there  were  many  who  proved  themselves  loyal  to 
Jehovah.  Prayer  and  fasting  and  sabbath  observance  took  the  place 
of  sacrificial  rites.  A  strong  emphasis  is  laid  by  Ezekiel  on  the  sab- 
bath (20'2-2i  2228  23'«).  From  this  time  on  it  became  one  of  the  most 
important  and  characteristic  institutions  of  Judaism.  Under  the  in- 
fluence of  the  new  situation  it  lost  much  of  its  original,  philanthropic, 
and  social  character  and  became  instead  a  ceremonial  institution.  In 
faithfully  observing  it  the  exiles  felt  that  even  in  captivity  they  were 
paying  homage  to  their  divine  King.  The  more  it  took  the  place  of  the 
ancient  feasts  and  sacrifices,  the  more  they  forgot  that  the  sabbath  was 
God's  gift  to  toiling  man  rather  than  man's  gift  to  God.  From  the  Baby- 
Ionian  exile,  also,  probably  dates  that  custom  of  assembling  on  the  sab- 
bath to  read  the  ancient  scriptures  which  represents  the  genesis  of  the 
later  synagogue  and  its  service. 

IV.  The  Prophecies  of  Ezekiel.  The  priest-prophet  Ezekiel  was 
the  interpreter,  pastor,  and  guide  of  the  Babylonian  exiles.  He  met 
their  problems  and  proposed  the  solutions  which  became  the  founda- 
tion principles  of  later  Judaism.  His  prophecies  fall  naturally  into 
four  distinct  groups:  (1)  Chapters  1  to  24,  v/hich  recount  his  call  and 
deal  with  the  issues  at  stake  in  the  different  Judean  communities  in  the 
critical  years  between  the  first  and  second  captivities.  They  represent 
the  prophet's  work  between  the  years  592  and  586  B.C.  (2)  Chapters 
25  to  32,  include  seven  oracles  regarding  Ammon,  Moab,  Edom,  Phil- 
istia,  Tyre,  and  Egypt,  the  nations  which  had  taken  part  in  the  de- 
struction of  Jerusalem  or  else,  like  Egypt,  had  lured  Judah  to  its  ruin. 
The  complete  destruction  of  these  foes  is  predicted,  and  chapter  32 
concludes  with  a  weird  picture  of  their  fate,  condemned  by  Jehovah  to 
dwell  in  Sheol,  the  abode  of  the  shades.  (3)  Chapters  33  to  39  contain 
messages  of  comfort  and  promise  to  Ezekiel's  fellow-exiles  in  Babylonia 
and  in  the  distant  lands  of  the  dispersion.  They  are  dated  between 
the  years  586  and  570  B.C.  (4)  Chapters  40  to  48  present  Ezekiel's 
plan  for  the  restored  temple  and  service  and  for  the  redistribution  of 
the  territory  of  Canaan,  and  his  belief  that  Judah's  fertility  would 
be  miraculously  increased.  This  plan  is  definitely  dated  in  the  year 
572  B.C.,  two  years  before  the  prophet's  death. 

V.  The  Resurrection  of  the  Dead  Nation.  Ezekiel  dealt  with  the 
problems  of  his  fellow-exiles  concretely  and  from  a  point  of  view  which 
they  could  readily  understand.  He  fully  realized  that  if  the  faith  of  the 
people  was  to  be  saved  in  this  crisis  a  definite  hope,  expressed  in  ob« 
jective  imagery,  must  be  set  before  them.     With  the  same  inspired 

20 


THE  RESURRECTION  OF  THE  DEAD  NATION 

insight  that  had  prompted  Jeremiah  to  purchase  his  family  estate  in 
the  hour  of  Jerusalem's  downfall,  Ezekiel  saw  that  Jehovah  would  yet 
restore  his  people,  if  they  would  but  respond  to  the  demands  of  this 
crisis.  His  message  was,  therefore,  one  of  hope  and  promise.  In  the 
memorable  chapter  in  which  he  pictures  a  valley  filled  with  dry  bones, 
he  aimed  to  inspire  their  faith  by  declaring  that  Jehovah  was  not  only 
able  but  would  surely  gather  together  the  dismembered  parts  of  the 
nation  and  impart  to  it  new  life  and  activity.  The  prophet  was  clearly 
speaking  of  national  rather  than  of  individual  resurrection.  Like 
Jeremiah,  he  anticipated  that  the  tribes  of  the  north  and  south  would 
again  be  united,  as  in  the  days  of  David,  and  that  over  them  a  scion 
of  the  Davidic  house  would  rule  as  Jehovah's  representative.  He  also 
assured  them  that  Jehovah  would  come  again  to  dwell  in  the  midst  of 
his  purified  and  restored  people. 

VI.  The  Divine  Shepherd.  In  the  thirty-fourth  chapter  Ezekiel 
deals  with  the  same  theme  under  a  different  figure.  First  he  traces  the 
cause  of  the  exile  to  the  inefficiency  and  greed  and  oppression  of  the 
earlier  shepherds,  the  rulers  like  Jehoiakim,  who  had  scattered  rather 
than  gathered  and  led  the  people  intrusted  to  them.  Now  Jehovah 
himself,  the  great  Shepherd  of  the  People,  will  arise  and  gather  his  flock, 
and  lead  them  back  to  their  home  and  give  them  a  rich  pasture.  Over 
them  he  will  appoint  a  descendant  of  David,  but  this  prince  shall  be 
shorn  of  his  ancient  kingly  power. 

Ezekiel  also  presents  in  his  characteristic,  symbolic  form  the  promise 
that  Jehovah  will  now  fulfil  the  popular  hopes  and  destroy  the  wicked 
foes  who  have  preyed  upon  his  people,  and  thus  vindicate  his  divine 
rulership  of  the  world.  In  one  passage  Judah's  worst  foes,  the  Edom- 
ites,  represent  aggressive  heathendom.  Again,  in  a  still  more  impres- 
sive picture,  suggested  by  an  experience  in  his  own  childhood  when  the 
dread  Scythians  swept  down  from  the  north,  he  portrays  the  advance 
of  the  mysterious  foes  from  the  distant  north  under  the  leadership  of 
Gog  (38,  39).  When  they  are  already  in  the  land  of  Palestine,  the 
prophet  declares,  Jehovah  will  terrify  them  with  an  earthquake,  so 
that  in  panic  they  shall  slay  each  other,  as  did  the  Midianites  in  the 
days  of  Gideon,  uudi  they  shall  all  fall  victims  of  Jehovah's  judgment. 
Ezekiel  thus  revived  in  the  changed  conditions  of  the  exile  that  popular 
conception  of  the  day  of  Jehovah  which  the  earlier  prophets  had  re- 
fused to  countenance.  It  was  the  prophet's  graphic  way  of  declaring 
that  Jehovah  would  prepare  the  way  for  the  return  of  his  people,  if 
they  would  but  respond  when  the  opportune  moment  should  arrive. 

21 


EZEKIEL'S  MESSAGE 

Later  Judaism,  however,  and  especially  the  apocalpytic  writers,  inter- 
preted literally  and  developed  still  further  this  picture  of  Jehovah's 
great  judgment  day  until  it  became  a  prominent  teaching  of  later 
Jewish  and  Christian  thought. 

Similarly  Ezckiel  declared  that  the  barren  lands  of  Judah  would  be 
miraculously  transformed  and  rendered  capable  of  supporting  the  great 
numbers  of  the  exiles  who  should  return.  In  this  respect  Ezekiel  be- 
came the  father  of  the  later  priestly  school  to  which  belongs  the  au- 
thor of  the  book  of  Chronicles,  in  whose  thought  the  events  of  Israel's 
history  came  to  pass,  not  through  man's  earnest  effort  and  in  accord- 
ance with  the  established  laws  of  the  universe,  but  through  special 
divine  interposition.  It  is  difficult  to  determine  whether  Ezekiel  him- 
self was  simply  endeavoring  to  state  dramatically  that  Jehovah  would 
fully  anticipate  the  needs  of  his  people,  or  whether  he  did  actually  antic- 
ipate a  series  of  prodigious  miracles. 

VII.  Ezekiel's  Plan  of  the  Restored  Temple.  Ezekiel,  being  a 
true  prophet,  fully  realized  that  the  fundamental  question  regarding  the 
future  of  his  race  was  not  whether  they  would  be  restored  to  their  home 
but  whether  or  not  they  would  guard  against  the  mistakes  and  sins  of 
the  past  and  live  in  accord  with  Jehovah's  just  demands.  The  solution 
of  this  question  which  he  proposes  reveals  his  priestly  training.  With 
infinite  pains  and  detail  he  develops  the  plan  of  a  restored  temple  and 
ritual.  The  details  were  doubtless  in  part  suggested  by  his  remembrance 
of  the  temple  at  Jerusalem  and  in  part  taken  from  the  great  temples  of 
Babylon.  By  means  of  this  elaborate  picture  he  declared  his  firm 
conviction  that  his  race  would  surely  be  restored.  His  chief  purpose, 
however,  was  to  impress  upon  the  minds  of  his  people  the  transcendent 
holiness  of  Jehovah  and  the  necessity  that  he  be  worshipped  by  a  holy 
people.  The  entire  plan  of  the  temple,  of  the  ritual,  and  even  of  the 
allotment  of  the  territory  of  Canaan  was  intended  to  enforce  this  idea. 
His  plan,  if  adopted,  was  calculated  to  deliver  the  people  from  the 
temptations  and  mistakes  of  the  past.  With  this  end  in  view  Jehovah's 
sacred  abode  was  guarded  with  massive  double  walls  and  huge  gateways. 
Only  the  priests  were  allowed  to  enter  the  inner  court,  and  a  sharp  dis- 
tinction was  made  between  the  priests  who  were  the  descendants  of  Zadok 
and  the  Levites  whose  fathers  had  ministered  at  the  many  sanctuaries 
scattered  throughout  the  land  of  Israel.  The  territory  immediately 
adjacent  to  the  temple  was  assigned  to  the  priests  and  Levites,  and  its 
sanctity  was  further  guarded  on  the  east  and  west  by  the  domains  of 
the  prince.     His  chief  function  was,  not  to  rule,  as  had  the  selfish  and 

22 


EZEKIEL'S  PLAN  OF  THE  RESTORED  TEMPLE 

ineflBcient  tyrants  who  had  preceded  him,  but  to  provide  the  animals 
and  the  material  requisite  for  the  temple  service.  The  territory  on  the 
north  and  the  south  of  the  temple  was  assigned  to  the  different  tribes 
of  Israel. 

No  political  or  social  problems  clouded  the  prophet's  vision.  The 
entire  energies  of  priest,  Levite,  prince,  and  people  were  to  be  devoted 
to  the  worship  of  the  Holy  One,  whose  restored  and  glorified  sanctuary 
stood  in  their  midst.  Thus  it  was  that  Ezekiel  reversed  the  ideals  of 
the  pre-exilic  Hebrew  state  and  presented  that  programme  which  with 
many  modifications  was  adopted  in  principle  at  least  by  the  post-exilic 
Judean  community.  In  place  of  the  monarchy  appeared  the  hierarchy; 
instead  of  the  king  the  high  priest  became  both  the  religious  and  the 
civil  head  of  the  nation.  Soon  the  Davidic  royal  line  disappeared 
entirely,  and  the  interests  of  the  people  centred  more  and  more  about 
the  temple  and  its  ritual.  Although  Ezekiel's  vision  was  not  and  could 
not  be  fully  realized,  except  by  a  series  of  miracles,  this  devoted  priest- 
prophet  of  the  exile  was  in  a  large  sense  the  father  of  Judaism. 

§  XCIII.     THE  CLOSING  YEARS  OF  THE  BABYLONIAN  RULE 

Now  it  came  to  pass  in  the  thirty-seventh  year  of  the  i 
captivity  of  Jehoiachin  king  of  Judah,  in  the  twenty-seventh 
day  of  the  twelfth  month,  Evil-merodach  king  of  Babylon, 
in  the  year  in  which  he  became  king,  (561  B.C.)  lifted  up  achfn 
Jehoiachin  king  of  Judah  from  prison  to  a  position  of  Kings. 
honor.  And  he  spoke  kindly  to  him  and  placed  his  seat  above  252'  30) 
the  seats  of  the  kings  who  were  with  him  in  Babylon,  and 
changed  his  prison  garments.  And  Jehoiachin  ate  with 
him  continually  as  long  as  he  lived.  And  for  his  support  a 
continual  allowance  was  given  him  by  the  king,  each  day 
a  portion,  as  long  as  he  lived. 


Libera- 
tion of 
King 
Jehoi- 


The  people  who  have  been  walking  in  darkness  see  a  great  2.  Hope 
light,  iV^! 

Those  who  dwell  in  the  land  of  deepest  gloom,  upon  them  a  '" 

,.,,,.  r  o  1      r  gloom 

light  shmes.  is.9'-s 

Thou   multipliest   the   exultation,   thou   makest  great  the 

rejoicing. 
They  rejoice  before  thee  as  men  rejoice  at  harvest  time, 
As  men  are  wont  to  exult  when  they  divide  spoil. 

23 


CLOSING  YEARS  OF  THE  BABYLONIAN  RULE 

For  the  burdensome  yoke  and  the  crossbar  on  his  shoulder, 
The  rod  of  his  taskmaster,  thou  breakest  as  in  the  day  of 

Midian. 
For  every  boot  of  the  warrior  with  noisy  tread, 
And  every  war-cloak  drenched  in  the  blood  of  the  slain 
Will  be  completely  burned  up  as  fuel  for  the  flame. 

For  a  child  is  bom,  to  us  a  son  is  given, 

And  dominion  shall  rest  upon  his  shoulder; 

And  his  name  will  be  Wonderful  Counsellor, 

Godlike  Hero,  Ever-watchful  Father,  Prince  of  Peace. 

To  the  increase  of  his  dominion  and  to  the  peace  there  shall 

be  no  end. 
On  the  throne  of  David  and  throughout  his  kingdom. 
To  establish  and  uphold  it  by  justice  and  righteousness 
Henceforth  and  forever.     The  jealousy  of  Jehovah  will  ac- 
complish this. 

A  sprout  shall  spring  from  the  stock  of  Jesse, 

And  a  shoot  from  his  roots  shall  bear  fruit. 

The  spirit  of  Jehovah  shall  rest  upon  him. 

A  spirit  of  wisdom  and  insight, 

A  spirit  of  counsel  and  might, 

A  spirit  of  knowledge  and  the  fear  of  Jehovah. 

He  will  not  judge  according  to  what  his  eyes  see, 
Nor  decide  according  to  what  his  ears  hear ; 
But  with  righteousness  will  he  judge  the  helpless. 
And  with  equity  will  he  decide  for  the  needy  in  the  land. 
He  will  smite  an  oppressor  with  the  rod  of  his  mouth. 
And  with  the  breath  of  his  lips  will  he  slay  the  guilty. 
Righteousness  will  be  the  girdle  about  his  loins, 
And  faithfulness  the  band  about  his  waist. 

Then  the  wolf  will  be  the  guest  of  the  lamb. 
And  the  leopard  will  lie  down  with  the  kid ; 
The  calf  and  the  young  lion  will  graze  together, 
And  a  little  child  shall  be  their  leader. 
The  cow  and  the  bear  shall  become  friends, 
Their  young  ones  shall  lie  down  together, 
24 


Upon 
all 

man- 
kind 


CLOSING  YEARS  OF  THE  BABYLONIAN  RULE 

And  the  lion  shall  eat  straw  like  the  ox ; 
The  suckling  will  play  about  the  hole  of  the  asp, 
And  the  weaned  child  will  stretch  out  his  hand  toward 
the  viper's  nest. 

Men  shall  not  harm  nor  destroy 

In  all  my  holy  mountain ; 

For  the  earth  shall  have  been  filled  with  knowledge  of 

Jehovah  (»"''^) 

As  the  waters  cover  the  sea. 
And  it  shall  come  to  pass  in  that  day, 
That  the  root  of  Jesse  who  is  to  stand  as  a  signal  to 

the  peoples — 
To  him  shall  the  nations  resort, 
And  his  resting-place  shall  be  glorious. 

Upon  a  treeless  mountain  lift  up  a  signal,  raise  a  cry  to  them,  9.  Je- 

Wave  the  hand  that  they  may  enter  the  princely  gates.  miTying 

I  myself  have  given  command  to  my  consecrated  ones,  to  j^''^^^ 

execute  my  wrath,  against 

I  have  also  summoned  my  heroes,  my  proudly  exultant  ones,  ion  ^ 

Hark,  a  tumult  on  the  mountains,  as  of  a  mighty  multitude!  ('^'"'> 
Hark,  an  uproar  of  kingdoms,  of  gathered  nations! 
It  is  Jehovah  of  hosts  mustering  the  martial  hosts. 

I  will  punish  the  earth  for  its  wickedness,  and  the  wicked  lo.  its 

coming 
over- 
throw 
by  the 
Medo- 
Persiaa 


17-19) 


for  their  iniquity, 
I  will  still  the  arrogance  of  the  proud,  and  lay  low  the  pre- 
sumption of  tyrants. 
Behold,  I  stir  up  against  them  the  Medes,  army 

Who  consider  not  silver,  and  take  no  pleasure  in  gold. 
On  children  they  will  look  with  no  pity,  they  have  no  com- 
passion on  the  fruit  of  the  womb. 
And  Babylon,  the  most  beautiful  of  kingdoms,  the  proud 

glory  of  the  Chaldeans,  shall  be. 
As  when  God  overthrew  Sodom  and  Gomorrah. 

It  shall  be  uninhabited  forever,  and  tenantless  age  after  age ; 
No  nomad  shall  pitch  there  his  tent,  nor  shepherds  let  their 
flocks  lie  down  there, 

25 


CLOSING  YEARS  OF  THE  BABYLONIAN  RULE 

11.  Its    But  wild  cats  shall  lie  there,  and  their  houses  shall  be  full  of 
Z'r  jackals; 

siruc-     Ostriches  shall  dwell  there,  and  satyrs  shall  dance  there, 
(20-22)      Howling  beasts  shall  cry  to  each  other  in  its  castles,  and 
wolves  in  its  revelling  halls; 
Its  time  is  near  at  hand,  its  day  shall  not  be  extended. 


12.  Cy-        In  the  first  year  of  Cyrus  the  king,  Cyrus  the  king  made 

com^.      a  decree:    Concerning  the  house  of  God  in  Jerusalem — 

mami     this  house  shall  be  rebuilt,  where  they  offer  sacrifices  and 

build      bring  him  offerings  made  by  fire.     Its  height  shall  be  sixty 

temple    cubits  and  its  breadth  sixty  cubits,  It  shall  be  constructed 

6?-"*'     with  three  layers  of  huge  stones  and  one  layer  of  timber. 

And  let  the  expenses  be  paid  out  of  the  king's  treasury. 

Also  let  the  gold  and  silver  vessels  of  the  house  of  God, 

which  Nebuchadrezzar  took  from  the  temple  at  Jerusalem 

and  brought  to  Babylon,  be  restored  and  brought  again  to 

the  temple  which  is  at  Jerusalem,  each  to  its  place,  and  you 

shall  put  them  in  the  house  of  God. 

Now  the  gold  and  silver  vessels  of  the  house  of  God  which 
Nebuchadrezzar  took  from  the  temple  at  Jerusalem  and 
brought  to  the  temple  in  Babylon,  those  Cyrus  the  king  took 
out  of  the  temple  in  Babylon,  and  they  were  delivered  to 
one  by  the  name  of  Sheshbazzar,  whom  he  had  made 
governor.  And  he  said  to  him,  Take  these  vessels;  go, 
put  them  in  the  temple  at  Jerusalem,  and  let  the  house  of 
God  be  rebuilt  in  its  place. 

Then  the  heads  of  the  fathers'  houses  of  Judah  and  Ben- 
jamin, and  the  priests  and  the  Levites,  even  all  whose  spirit 
God  had  stirred  to  go  up  to  build  the  temple  of  Jehovah 
which  is  at  Jerusalem,  arose.  And  all  those  who  were 
about  them  supplied  them  with  silver  vessels,  with  gold, 
with  goods,  and  with  beasts,  and  with  precious  things, 
besides  all  that  was  voluntarily  offered. 

These  are  the  names  of  the  men  who  went  up,  accord- 
ing to  their  tribes,  by  their  genealogy.  Of  the  priests  the 
sons  of  Phinehas,  the  son  of  Aaron:  Jeshua  the  son  of 
Jozadak,  the  son  of  Seriah.  And  there  rose  up  with  him 
Zerubbabel  the  son  of  Shealtiel  of  the  house  of  David, 
of  the  family  of   Peres,   of   the   tribe   of  Judah;   in  the 

26 


32-4.  6b) 


THE  TRANSFOR^NIATION  OF  THE  JEWS 

second  year  of  Cyrus  king  of  Persia  in  the  first  day  of 
the  month  Nisan. 

Then  Jeshua  the  son  of  Jozadak,  and  his  kinsmen  the  15.  Re- 
priests,  and  Zerubbabel  the  son  of  Shealtiel  and  his  kinsmen  °fYhe 
arose  and  built  the  altar  of  the  God  of  Israel,  to  offer  burnt-  ^itar 
offerings  on  it,  as  prescribed  in  the  law  of  Moses  the  man  of  (Ezra 
God.     And  they  set  up  the  altar  in  its  place;    for  fear, 
because  of  the  peoples  dwelling  in  the  land,  had  come  upon 
them,   but  they  plucked  up   courage   and   offered   burnt- 
offerings   to  Jehovah,   even  burnt-offerings  morning  and 
evening.     And  they  kept  the  feast  of  booths  as  it  is  pre- 
scribed, and  offered  the  fixed  number  of  daily  burnt-offer- 
ings according  to  the  direction  for  each  day ;  but  the  foun- 
dation of  the  temple  of  Jehovah  was  not  yet  laid. 

I.  The  Transformation  of  the  Jews  into  a  Literary  People. 

The  destruction  of  Jerusalem  transformed  the  Jewish  peasants  of 
Palestine  into  a  literary  race.  Before  the  final  destruction  of  Jerusalem 
they  had  lived  together  in  a  small  territory  where  communication  was 
easy  and  the  need  of  written  records  but  slight.  The  exile  separated 
friends  and  members  of  the  same  families,  and  scattered  them  broad- 
cast throughout  the  then  known  world.  The  only  means  of  communi- 
cating with  each  other  in  most  cases  was  by  writing,  and  this  necessity 
inevitably  developed  the  literary  art.  The  exiles  in  Babylonia  and 
Egypt  were  also  in  close  contact  with  the  two  most  active  literary 
peoples  of  the  ancient  world.  In  countries  where  almost  every  public 
or  private  act  was  recorded  in  written  form,  and  where  the  literature 
of  the  past  was  carefully  preserved  and  widely  transcribed,  it  was 
inevitable  that  the  Jews  should  be  powerfully  influenced  by  these  ex- 
amples. Furthermore,  the  teachers  of  the  race,  prophets  and  priests 
alike,  prevented  by  the  destruction  of  the  temple  from  employing  their 
former  oral  and  symbolic  methods  of  instruction,  resorted,  as  did  the 
priest  Ezekiel,  to  the  pen.  Thus  the  religious  thought  and  devotion 
of  the  race  began  to  find  expression  in  it.s  literature. 

The  incentives  to  collect  the  earlier  writings  of  the  priests  and  prophets 
were  also  exceedingly  strong,  for  the  experiences  and  institutions  of 
their  past,  together  with  their  hopes  for  the  future,  were  the  two  main 
forces  that  now  held  together  the  Jewish  race.  Fortunately,  the  more 
intelligent  leaders  realized,  even  before  586  B.C.,  that  the  final  catas- 
trophe was  practically  certain,  and  therefore  prepared  for  it  in  advance. 

27 


CLOSING  YEARS  OF  THE  BABYLONIAN  RULE 

The  decade  between  the  first  and  second  captivities  also  gave  them  an 
opportunity  to  collect  the  more  important  writings  of  their  earlier  pro- 
phetic and  priestly  teachers,  while  the  Judean  state  was  still  intact  and 
while  these  earlier  writings  could  be  readily  consulted. 

II.  The  Literary  Activity  of  the  Babylonian  Period.  The 
literary  work  of  this  period  took  three  distinct  forms:  (1)  The  collec- 
tion, compilation,  and  editing  of  earlier  historical  writings.  It  was 
probably  during  this  period  that  the  narratives  of  Judges,  of  Samuel, 
and  Kings,  which  carried  the  history  down  into  the  exile  itself,  re- 
ceived their  final  revision.  (2)  Earlier  writings  were  revised  or  sup- 
plemented so  as  to  adapt  them  to  the  new  and  different  conditions. 
Thus  the  sermons  of  the  pre-exilic  prophets,  as  for  example  those  of 
Amos  and  Isaiah,  were  then  revised  and  supplemented  at  many  points. 
These  earlier  prophets  had  predicted  doom  and  destruction  for  their 
nation;  but  now  that  their  predictions  had  been  realized  what  was 
needed  was  a  message  of  comfort  and  promise.  The  fulfilment  of 
their  earlier  predictions  had  established  their  authority  in  the  minds  of 
the  people.  The  purpose  of  the  later  editors  was  evidently  to  put  in 
the  mouth  of  these  earlier  prophets  what  they  probably  would  have  said 
had  they  been  present  to  speak  at  the  later  day  to  their  discouraged 
and  disconsolate  countrymen.  Studied  in  the  light  of  these  two  funda- 
mentally different  points  of  view,  the  glaring  inconsistencies  which  ap- 
pear in  the  prophetic  books  are  fully  explained  and  the  consistency  of 
the  earlier  prophets  vindicated. 

The  third  form  of  literary  activity  is  represented  by  the  WTitings  of 
Ezekiel.  With  the  authority  of  a  prophet,  he  dealt  directly  with  the 
problem  of  his  day,  and  the  greater  part  of  his  book  consists  of  the 
records  of  his  prophetic  addresses  or  of  epistles  which  he  sent  to  his 
scattered  fellow-countrymen,  even  as  Jeremiah  wrote  from  Judah  a 
letter  to  the  distant  exiles  in  Babylon.  His  new  constitution  for  the 
restored  Jewish  state  was  also  based  on  earlier  customs  and  laws,  but 
was  adapted  to  the  new  needs  of  the  changed  situation.  He  was  not 
the  only  one  to  undertake  this  task.  Other  priests  gathered  earlier 
groups  of  oral  laws  and  put  in  written  form  the  customs  and  traditions 
of  the  pre-exilic  temple.  At  the  same  time  they  modified  these  earlier 
customs  so  as  to  correct  the  evils  which  past  experience  had  revealed. 

III.  The  Holiness  Code.  The  chief  product  of  the  literary  activity 
of  the  earlier  part  of  the  exile  is  the  collection  of  laws  found  in  the 
seventeenth  to  the  twenty-sixth  chapters  of  Leviticus.  Because  of  its 
strong  emphasis  on  the  holiness  of  Jehovah  and  on  the  necessity  that 

28 


THE  HOLINESS  CODE 

he  be  worshipped  by  a  people  both  ceremonially  and  morally  holy,  it 
is  now  commonly  designated  as  the  Holiness  Code.  In  theme,  in  point 
of  view,  in  purpose,  and  in  literary  form  it  has  many  close  points  of 
contact  with  the  writings  of  Ezekiel.  In  its  original  unity  it  evidently 
came  from  the  period  and  circle  of  thought  in  which  the  great  priest- 
prophet  lived.  His  sermons,  however,  suggest  that  he  was  acquainted 
with  its  main  teachings.  In  distinguishing  sharply  between  the  Jeru- 
salem priests  and  the  ministering  Levites,  and  in  prohibiting  the  mar- 
riage of  a  priest  with  a  widow,  Ezekiel  shows  that  his  work  represented 
a  slightly  later  stage  in  the  development  of  Israel's  religious  standards. 
The  most  probable  date,  therefore,  for  the  Holiness  Code  is  the  decade 
between  the  first  and  second  capitvity  (597-5S6  B.C.). 

Like  every  ancient  lawbook  the  Holiness  Code  contains  many  laws 
and  regulations  which  evidently  come  from  a  much  earlier  period  in 
Israel's  history.  Some  of  its  enactments  are  very  similar  to  those  of 
the  primitive  codes  of  Exodus  21-23.  In  spirit  it  is  closely  related  to 
the  book  of  Deuteronomy.  It  also  reproduces  many  of  the  laws  found 
in  this  earlier  code.  Both  codes  represent  the  fruitage  of  the  teaching 
of  the  pre-exilic  prophets  and  priests.  Each  contains  ceremonial,  civil, 
and  moral  laws;  but  the  emphasis  on  the  ritual  is  more  pronounced 
in  the  Holiness  Code.  It  consists  of  ten  or  eleven  distinct  groups  of 
laws.  In  Leviticus  18  and  19  are  found  certain  short  decalogues. 
They  probably  represent  the  united  efforts  of  the  Judean  prophets  and 
priests  during  the  Assyrian  period  to  inculcate  the  true  principles  of 
justice,  service,  and  worship  in  the  minds  of  the  people.  Some  of  the 
laws  in  these  earlier  decalogues  are  the  noblest  examples  of  Old  Testa- 
ment legislation: 

DUTIES  TO  OTHERS 

L  Thou  shalt  not  wholly  reap  the  corners  of  thy  fields.      Kind- 

II.  Thou  shalt  not  gather  the  gleanings  of  thy  harvest.      "^^^  ^'^ 

III.  Thou  shalt  not  glean  thy  vineyard.  needy 

IV.  Thou  shalt  not  gather  the  fallen  fruit  of  thy  vineyard. 
V.  Thou  shalt  leave  them  for  the  poor  and  the  resident 

alien. 

VI.  Ye  shall  not  steal.  Hon- 

VII.  Ye  shall  do  no  injustice,  in  measures  of  length,  weight  fn'^^si- 

or  of  quantity.  ness 

VIII.  Ye  shall  not  deal  falsely  with  one  another.  tfoM 

29 


CLOSING  YEARS  OF  THE  BABYLONIAN  RULE 

IX.  Ye  shall  not  lie  to  one  another. 
X.  Ye  shall  not  swear  falsely  by  my  name. 

JUSTICE  TO  ALL  MEN 

I.  Thou  shalt  not  oppress  thy  neighbor. 
II.  Thou  shalt  not  rob  thy  neighbor. 

III.  The  wages  of  a  hired  servant  shall  not  remain  with 

thee  all  night  until  the  morning. 

IV.  Thou  shalt  not  curse  the  deaf. 

V.  Thou  shalt  not  put  a  stumbling-block  before  the  blind. 

VI.  Thou  shalt  not  do  injustice  in  rendering  a  judicial 

decision. 
VII.  Thou  shalt  not  show  partiality  to  the  poor. 
VIII.  Thou   shalt  not   have  undue   consideration  for  the 
powerful. 
IX.  Thou  shalt  not  go  about  as  a  tale-bearer  among  thy 

people. 
X.  Thou  shalt  not  seek  the  blood  of  thy  neighbor  [by 
bearing  false  testimony  in  court]. 

ATTITUDE  TOWARD  OTHERS 

I.  Thou  shalt  not  hate  thy  fellow-countryman  in  thy 

heart. 
II.  Thou  shalt  warn  thy  neighbor  and  not  incur  sin  on 
his  account. 

III.  Thou  shalt  not  take  vengeance. 

IV.  Thou  shalt  not  bear  a  grudge  against  the  members  of 

thy  race. 
V.  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself. 

IV.  The  Liberation  of  Jehoiachin  and  the  Hopes  of  the  Jews. 

The  liberation  of  Jehoiachin,  the  grandson  of  Josiah,  from  the  Baby- 
lonian prison  where  he  had  been  confined  since  the  first  capture  of 
Jerusalem  was  the  one  event  in  the  Babylonian  period  deemed  worthy 
of  record  by  the  biblical  historians.  The  occasion  was  the  accession 
of  Nebuchadrezzar's  son  Evil-merodach  (Babylonian,  Amil-Marduk). 
The  act  possessed  little  political  importance,  for  the  Jews  were  helpless 

30 


THE  LIBERATION  OF  JEHOIACHIN 

in  the  hands  of  their  Babylonian  masters;  but  it  evidently  aroused  the 
hopes  of  the  exiles,  and  especially  that  type  of  hope  which  centred  in 
the  house  of  David. 

Ezekiel,  in  his  ideal  programme,  assigned  to  the  Davidic  prince  only 
minor  duties  in  connection  with  the  temple,  and  transferred  the  chief 
authority  to  the  high  priest  and  his  attendants.  But  it  is  evident  that 
Ezekiel  did  not  fully  voice  the  hopes  of  the  majority  of  the  exiles.  The 
late  passage  in  II  Samuel  7'^  which  contains  the  promise  to  David: 

Thy  house  and  kingdom  shall  always  stand  firm  before  me, 
Thy  throne  shall  be  established  forever, 

expresses  the  prevailing  belief  in  the  days  immediately  preceding  the 
exile.  The  national  hopes  which  looked  to  the  descendants  of  the  house 
of  David  for  fulfilment  were  inevitably  modified,  however,  by  the  ex- 
periences of  the  exile  and  strengthened  by  the  liberation  of  Jehoiachin. 
The  rule  of  such  kings  as  Manasseh  and  Jehoiakim  had  revealed  the 
overwhelming  evils  that  unworthy  rulers,  even  though  of  the  house  of 
David,  could  bring  upon  their  subjects.  Josiah's  reign,  on  the  other 
hand,  established  new  and  higher  standards.  The  noble  ethical  and 
social  ideals  of  Amos,  Hosea,  and  Isaiah  had  not  wholly  failed  to 
awaken  a  response. 

All  of  these  varied  influences  are  traceable  in  the  two  prophecies 
found  in  Isaiah  9'"^  and  ll'''".  Embodying  as  they  do  many  of  the 
social  principles  for  which  Isaiah  contended,  it  was  natural  that  these 
anonymous  writings  should  afterward  be  attributed  to  that  great 
statesman-prophet.  Jehovah,  however,  was  the  one  supreme  king 
whom  Isaiah  acknowledged;  and  it  was  difficult  to  find  in  his  strenu- 
ous life  a  logical  or  historical  setting  for  these  kingly  oracles.  They 
also  imply  that  the  royal  house  of  Judah  had  been  struck  down,  and 
that  the  new  king  is  to  rise  out  of  a  background  of  gloom  and  is  to  in- 
augurate an  entirely  new  era.  The  character  and  rule  of  this  king  of 
popular  hopes  reflect  many  of  the  traits  of  David  and  Josiah;  but  his 
aims  and  methods  are  in  accord  with  the  moral  and  social  standards  of 
the  great  pre-exilic  prophets.  They  portray  a  temporal  ruler;  but  the 
spirit  which  actuates  him  and  the  principles  which  guide  him  are  noble 
and  unselfish.  As  subsequent  history  clearly  shows,  the  prophet  or 
prophets  who  painted  these  portraits  apparently  hoped  that  a  son  or 
grandson  of  Jehoiachin  would  realize  them.  It  is  exceedingly  probable 
in  the  light  of  the  later  predictions  of  Haggai  and  Zechariah  (§§  XCIV, 

31 


CLOSING  YEARS  OF  THE  BABYLONIAN  RULE 

XCV)  that  these  prophecies  were  written  not  long  after  the  birth  of 
Zerubbabel.  The  kingdom  over  which  he  was  to  rule  and  to  which 
he  was  to  bring  perfect  justice  and  peace  was  the  prophetic  counter- 
part of  Ezekiel's  priestly  plan  of  the  restored  and  redeemed  community. 
The  ethical  ideals  thus  concretely  set  forth  were  never  fully  realized  in 
Israel's  troubled  history;  but  they  remain  as  valid  and  commanding 
to-day  as  they  were  far  back  in  the  Babylonian  period.  The  abolition 
of  all  the  insignia  of  war,  the  high  sense  of  official  responsibility,  the 
protection  of  the  weak  by  the  strong,  and  the  reign  of  perfect  peace 
and  harmony  throughout  all  the  earth  are  the  goals  for  which  all  earnest, 
consecrated  souls  in  every  age  and  race  are  striving.  It  is  natural  and 
proper  that  the  Christian  Church  should  see  in  Jesus  the  fullest  and 
truest  realization  of  these  ancient  kingly  ideals. 

V.  The  Rule  of  Nabonidus.  The  successors  of  Nebuchadrezzar 
proved  weak  and  inefficient.  His  dissolute  son,  Amil-Marduk,  was 
soon  murdered  by  his  brother-in-law  Nergalsharuzur  (Gk.  Neriglis- 
sar).  This  ruler  is  probably  the  Nergal-sharezer  of  Jeremiah  39*  who 
directed  the  final  capture  and  destruction  of  Jerusalem  in  5S6  B.C. 
After  reigning  four  years  he  died,  leaving  the  Babylonian  empire  to  his 
young  son,  who  soon  fell  a  victim  to  a  conspiracy  of  his  nobles.  They 
placed  on  the  throne  a  certain  Nabuna'id,  who  is  known  to  the  Greek 
historians  as  Nabonidus.  He  appeared  to  be  more  interested  in  ex- 
cavating ancient  ruins  and  in  rebuilding  old  temples  than  in  ruling  his 
subjects.  By  his  arbitrary  religious  policy  and  his  neglect  of  the  popu- 
lar gods  of  the  Babylonians,  he  completely  alienated  the  loyalty  of  his 
people.  During  the  latter  part  of  his  reign,  which  extended  from  555 
to  538  B.C.,  he  left  the  government  largely  in  charge  of  his  son  Belsha- 
ruzur,  the  Belshazzar  of  the  story  in  Daniel. 

VI.  Rise  and  Conquests  of  Cyrus.  While  the  Babylonian  empire 
was  sinking  into  decay,  the  Median  kingdom  on  the  north  and  east  ex- 
perienced a  sweeping  revolution.  Its  cause  was  the  discontent  of  the 
older  ^Median  population  under  the  rule  of  the  more  barbarous  Umman- 
Manda.  These  later  Scythian  conquerors  had,  under  their  king  Cyaxa- 
res,  broken  the  power  of  Assyria  and  fallen  heir  to  its  eastern  territory. 
The  older  elements  found  a  leader  in  Cyrus,  the  king  of  Anshan,  a  lit- 
tle state  among  the  mountains  of  Elam,  northeast  of  Babylonia.  From 
contemporary  inscriptions  it  appears  that  the  followers  of  Astyages, 
who  succeeded  Cyaxares  to  the  Median  throne,  rebelled  against  their 
king  and  delivered  him  over  into  the  hands  of  Cyrus.  As  soon  as 
Cyrus  became  master  of  the  Median  Empire,  he  proved  an  able  com- 

32 


RISE  AND  CONQUESTS  OF  CYRUS 

mander,  a  skilful  politician,  and  a  wise  statesman.  Recognizing  that 
he  could  hold  in  control  the  diverse  and  turbulent  elements  in  his 
heterogeneous  kingdom  only  as  he  kept  them  actively  occupied,  he  at 
once  entered  upon  a  series  of  campaigns  which  in  the  end  left  him  un- 
disputed master  of  southwestern  Asia.  In  547  B.C.,  tw^o  years  after  he 
became  king  of  Media,  he  crossed  the  Tigris  and  conquered  Mesopo- 
tamia, which  had  been  held  for  a  time  by  the  Babylonians.  Appar- 
ently he  did  not  assume  the  title  King  of  Persia  until  546.  Appreciating 
the  great  strength  of  Babylon,  he  did  not  at  first  attempt  its  capture, 
but  began  at  once  by  intrigue  to  pave  the  way  for  its  ultimate  overthrow. 
In  545  he  set  out  on  a  western  campaign  against  Croesus,  the  king  of 
Lydia,  the  ancient  rival  of  Media.  After  a  quick  and  energetic  cam- 
paign, Sardis,  the  rich  Lydian  capital,  was  captured,  and  Cyrus  was 
free  to  advance  against  the  opulent  Greek  colonies  that  lay  along  the 
eastern  shores  of  the  iEgean.  These  in  rapid  succession  fell  into  his 
hands,  so  that  by  538  B.C.  he  was  in  a  position  to  advance  with  a  large 
victorious  army  against  the  mistress  of  the  lower  Euphrates. 

VII.  His  Capture  of  Babylon.  The  campaigns  of  Cyrus  were 
naturally  watched  with  keen  interest  by  the  Jewish  exiles  in  Babylonia. 
The  songs  in  Isaiah  14,  15,  and  21^'^",  and  Jeremiah  51^""",  voice  their 
joyous  expectation  of  Babylon's  impending  humiliation.  In  a  con- 
temporary inscription  Cyrus  has  given  a  vivid  account  of  the  fall  of  the 
capital.  Early  in  October  of  the  year  538  B.C.  he  assembled  a  large 
army  on  the  northern  borders  of  Babylonia.  Here  a  battle  was  fought 
in  which  the  Babylonians  were  completely  defeated.  The  town  of 
Sippar  quickly  surrendered  to  Cyrus's  general,  and  two  days  later  the 
Persian  army  entered  Babylon.  The  record  states  that  the  gates  of 
the  mighty  city  were  opened  by  its  fnhabitants,  and  Cyrus  and  his 
followers  were  welcomed  as  deliverers.  King  Nabonidus  was  captured 
and  banished  to  the  distant  province  of  Carmania,  northeast  of  the 
Persian  Gulf.  In  the  words  of  Cyrus:  "Peace  he  gave  the  town; 
peace  he  proclaimed  to  all  the  Babylonians."  In  the  eyes  of  the 
conquered,  he  figured  as  the  champion  of  their  gods,  whose  images 
he  restored  to  the  capital  city.  The  temples  as  well  as  the  walls  of 
Babylon  were  rebuilt,  and  the  king  publicly  proclaimed  himself  a  de- 
voted worshipper  of  Marduk  and  Nebo,  the  chief  gods  of  the  Baby- 
lonians. Thus  from  the  first  the  policy  of  Cyrus  in  treating  conquered 
peoples  was  fundamentally  different  from  that  of  the  Babylonians 
and  Assyrians.  They  had  sought  to  establish  their  power  by  crush- 
ing the  conquered  rather  thar   by  furthering   their  well-being;    but 

33 


CLOSING  YEARS  OF  THE  BABYLONIAN  RULE 

Cyrus,  by  his  many  acts  of  clemency,  aimed  to  secure  and  hold 
their  loyalty. 

VIII.  His  Treatment  of  Conquered  Peoples.  Cyrus  showed  the 
same  wisdom  in  his  treatment  of  the  many  petty  peoples  who  had  been 
ground  down  under  the  harsh  rule  of  Babylon.  In  one  of  his  inscrip- 
tions he  declares:  "The  gods  whose  sanctuaries  from  of  old  had  lain 
in  ruins  I  brought  back  again  to  their  dwelling-places  and  caused  them 
to  reside  there  forever.  All  of  the  citizens  of  these  lands  I  assembled 
and  I  restored  them  to  their  homes"  (Cyrus  Cyl.,  31,  32).  In  the 
light  of  this  statement  it  is  clear  that  the  Jews,  in  common  with  other 
captive  peoples,  were  given  full  permission  to  return  to  their  homes 
and  to  rebuild  their  ruined  temple.  The  decree  of  Cyrus  recorded  in 
the  Aramaic  document  preserved  in  Ezra  &'^  is  apparently  the  Jewish 
version  of  the  general  decree  which  he  issued.  It  is  also  possible  that 
he  aided  the  vassal  peoples  in  rebuilding  their  sanctuaries;  for  such 
action  was  in  perfect  accord  with  his  wise  policy.  He  also  intrusted 
the  rulership  of  different  kingdoms  as  far  as  possible  to  native  princes. 
In  the  Greek  book  of  I  Esdras  has  been  preserved  a  list  (which  has 
fallen  out  of  the  biblical  book  of  Ezra)  of  those  who  availed  themselves 
of  Cyrus's  permission  to  return  to  Palestine.  It  includes  simply  the 
priest  Jeshua,  or  Joshua,  the  lineal  heir  of  the  early  Jerusalem  priestly 
line  of  Zadok,  and  Zerubbabel,  a  descendant  of  the  Judean  royal  family. 
They  doubtless  took  with  them  their  immediate  followers  and  were 
probably  accompanied  by  a  few  exiles  whose  loyalty  impelled  them  to 
leave  the  attractive  opportunities  in  Babylon  to  face  the  dangers  of  the 
long  journey  and  the  greater  perils  in  Palestine. 

From  Jeremiah  4P  and  Haggai  2"  it  appears  that  a  rude  altar  had 
been  built  on  the  sacred  rock  at  Jerusalem  and  that  religious  services 
were  held  on  the  site  of  the  ruined  temple  soon  after  its  destruction  in 
586  B.C.  With  the  gifts  brought  back  by  Zerubbabel  and  his  followers, 
daily  sacrifices  were  probably  instituted  on  the  restored  altar  under 
the  direction  of  the  priest  Joshua  (cf.  Hag.  2'°"").  In  the  light,  how- 
ever, of  the  oldest  records  it  is  clear  that  the  revival  of  the  Judean 
community  in  Palestine  was  gradual  and  at  first  far  from  glorious. 
The  Jews  were  a  broken-hearted,  poverty-stricken,  persecuted  people, 
still  crushed  by  the  great  calamity  that  had  overtaken  their  nation. 
The  general  return  of  the  exiles  was  only  a  dream  of  the  future,  and, 
despite  the  general  permission  of  Cyrus,  the  temple  at  Jerusalem  still 
lay  in  ruins, 

34 


THE  REBUILDING  OF  THE  TEMPLE 

§  XCIV.     THE  REBUILDING  OF  THE  TEMPLE 

In  the  second  year  of  Darius  the  king,  in  the  first  day  of  i.Jc-^ 
the  sixth  month,  this  word  of  Jehovah  came  by  Haggai  the  dfsap^* 
prophet:  Speak  to  Zerubbabel  the  son  of  Shealtiel,  governor  p["J^^' 
of  Judah,  and  to  Joshua  the  son  of  Jehozadak  the  high  delay 
priest,  saying,  'Thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts,  "This  people  i^uitd- 
say:    The  time  has  not  yet  come  to  rebuild  the  temple  of  '^J^^\^ 
Jehovah."  '     Then  this  word  of  Jehovah  came  by  Haggai  (Hag. 
the  prophet:    Is  it  a  time  for  you  yourselves  to  dwell  in   ''^^ 
your  own  ceiled  houses,  while  this  temple  lies  in  ruins? 
Now  therefore,  thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts,  *  Consider  your 
past  experiences.     Ye  sow  much,  but  bring  in  little ;  ye  eat, 
but  ye  do  not  have  enough ;  ye  drink,  but  ye  are  not  filled ; 
ye  clothe  yourselves,  but  not  so  as  to  be  warm ;  and  he  who 
earneth  wages,  earneth  wages  in  a  bag  with  holes.' 

Thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts,  '  Consider  your  experiences.  2.  The 
Go  up  to  the  mountains,  and  bring  wood  and  rebuild  the  of"the 
temple ;  then  I  will  be  pleased  with  it,  and  I  will  reveal  my  p^?-^ 
glory,'  saith  Jehovah.     *  Ye  looked  for  much,  and  it  came  to  caiam- 
little ;  and  when  ye  brought  it  home,  I  blew  upon  it.     Why  ? '   (V-?f) 
saith  Jehovah  of  hosts.     'Because  of  my  temple  that  lieth 
in  ruins,  while  ye  are  running  each  to  his  own  house. 
Therefore  the  heavens  withhold  the  dew,  and  the  earth 
withholdeth  its  fruit.     And  I  have  called  forth  a  drought 
upon  the  land  and  upon  the  mountains,  and  upon  the  grain 
and  the  new  wine  and  the  oil  and  upon  that  which  the 
ground  bringeth  forth,  and  upon  men  and  animals,  and 
upon  all  the  labor  of  the  hands.' 

Then  Zerubbabel  the  son  of  Shealtiel  and  Joshua  the  son  3. 
of  Jehozadak  the  high  priest,  with  all  the  rest  of  the  people,  Jio'n  of 
obeyed  the  command  of  Jehovah  their  God  and  the  words  ^^^^.^ 
of  Haggai  the  prophet,  as  Jehovah  their  God  had  sent  him  p-"*) 
to  them.     The  people  also  feared  before  Jehovah.     And 
Jehovah  stirred   up  the  spirit  of  Zerubbabel   the   son  of 
Shealtiel,  governor  of  Judah,  and  the  spirit  of  Joshua  the 
son  of  Jehozadak  the  high  priest,  and  the  spirit  of  all  the 
rest  of  the  people,  so  that  they  came  and  worked  on  the 
temple  of  Jehovah  of  hosts,  their  God,  in  the  twenty-fourth 
day  of  the  sixth  month. 

35 


THE  REBUILDING  OF  THE  TEMPLE 

4.  As-  In  the  second  year  of  Darius  the  king,  on  the  twenty* 
of?"-*'*  first  day  of  the  seventh  month,  this  word  from  Jehovah 
hoyah's  came  by  Haggai  the  prophet:  Speak  to  Zerubbabel  son  of 
provai^  Shealtiel,  governor  of  Judah,  and  to  Joshua,  the  son  of 
(i"b.25)  jgjjQ^adak,  the  high  priest,  and  to  all  the  remnant  of  the 

people,  saying,  *  Who  is  left  among  you  that  saw  this  temple 
in  its  former  glory?  and  how  do  you  see  it  now?  Is  it  not 
in  your  eyes  as  nothing?  Yet  now  be  strong,  0  Zerubbabel,' 
is  the  oracle  of  Jehovah ;  *  and  be  strong,  O  Joshua,  son  of 
Jehozadak,  the  high  priest,  and  be  strong,  all  ye  people  of 
the  land,'  is  the  oracle  of  Jehovah,  'and  work,  for  I  am  with 
you,'  is  the  oracle  of  Jehovah  of  hosts,  'and  my  spirit  abideth 
in  your  midst;  fear  not.' 

5.  For  thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts:  'Yet  a  little  while,  and 
^S™f  I  will  shake  the  heavens,  and  the  earth,  and  the  sea,  and  the 
bf^-  ^^  land.  And  I  will  shake  all  nations,  and  the  precious 
ings  things  of  all  nations  shall  come;  and  I  will  fill  this  temple 
^^'^      with  glory,'  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts.     'The  silver  is  mine, 

and  the  gold  is  mine,'  is  the  oracle  of  Jehovah  of  hosts. 
'The  later  glory  of  this  temple  shall  be  greater  than  the 
former,'  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts;  'and  in  this  place  will  I 
grant  prosperity,'  is  the  oracle  of  Jehovah  of  hosts. 

6.  Past  In  the  twenty-fourth  day  of  the  ninth  month,  in  the 
tion"  second  year  of  Darius,  this  word  of  Jehovah  came  by  Haggai 
nlt^^n  *^®  prophet:  Thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts:  'Ask  of  the 
(1014)      priests  a  decision,  saying,  "  If  one  bear  holy  flesh  in  the 

skirt  of  his  garment,  and  with  his  skirt  touch  bread,  or 
pottage,  or  wine,  or  oil,  or  any  food,  shall  it  become  holy?'" 
And  the  priests  answered  and  said.  No.  Then  said  Haggai, 
If  one  that  is  unclean  by  reason  of  a  dead  body  touch  any 
of  these,  shall  it  be  unclean?  And  the  priests  answered 
and  said.  It  shall  be  unclean.  Then  answered  Haggai  and 
said.  So  is  this  people  and  so  is  this  nation  before  me,  is  the 
oracle  of  Jehovah;  and  so  is  every  work  of  their  hands; 
and  that  which  they  offer  there  is  unclean. 

7.  Its  And  now,  I  pray  you,  think  back  from  this  day,  before  a 
the  flii-  stone  was  laid  upon  a  stone  in  the  temple  of  Jehovah ;  how 
re'bufld  '^^^^  y^^  When  ye  came  to  a  heap  of  twenty  measures, 
the  there  were  but  ten;  when  ye  came  to  the  wine  vat  to  draw 
Q^?l^    out  fifty  vessels,  there  were  but  twenty.     I  smote  with 

36 


take  thee,  0  Zenibbabel,  my  servant,  the  son  of  Shealtiel,'  ^l^]"' 
is  Jehovah's  oracle,  'and  will  make  thee  as  a  seal-ring,  for  ^ei 


THE  REBUILDING  OF  THE  TEMPLE 

blasting  and  with  mildew  and  with  hail  all  the  work  of 
your  hands ;  yet  ye  turned  not  to  me,  is  the  oracle  of  Jeho- 
vah. Think  back  from  this  day,  think!  Is  the  seed  yet  in 
the  granary,  yea,  the  vine  and  the  fig  tree  and  the  pome- 
granate and  the  olive  tree  have  not  brought  forth;  from 
this  day  will  I  bless  you. 

This  word  of  Jehovah  came  the  second  time  to  Haggai  s. 
in  the  twenty-fourth  day  of  the  month:    Speak  to  Zerub-  wide 
babel,  governor  of  Judah,  and  say :  *  I  will  shake  the  heavens  ^^^vai 
and  the  earth;    and  I  will  overthrow  the  throne  of  king-  c^"^) 
doms;   and  I  will  destroy  the  strength  of  the  kingdoms  of 
the  nations;   and  I  will  overthrow  the  chariots,  and  those 
who  ride  in  them;    and  the  horses  and  their  riders  shall 
come  down,  each  by  the  sword  of  his  brother. 

'In  that  day,*  is  the  oracle  of  Jehovah  of  hosts,  'I  will  9. RoI© 

of  Ze- 
rubba- 
bel 

(23) 

I  have  chosen  thee,'  is  the  oracle  of  Jehovah  of  hosts. 

At  that  time  Tattenai,  the  governor  of  the  province  be-  10.  in- 
yond  the  River,  and  Shethar-bozenai  and  their  associates  o^Sr 
came  to  them,  and  spoke  thus  to  them.  Who  gave  you  per-  ^^'J'^," 
mission  to  build  this  temple  and  to  finish  this  wall?     And   (Ezra  '^ 
who  are  the  builders  who  are  carrying  this  through?     But  ^'  '^ 
the  eye  of  their  God  was  upon  the  elders  of  the  Jews,  so  that 
they  did  not  make  them  cease,  until  a  report  should  come 
to  Darius  and  a  written  decision  concerning  it  be  returned. 

Then  Darius  the  king  made  a  decree,  and  search  was  11. 
made  in  the  archives  where  the  ofl&cial  documents  from  fi^he 
Babylon  had  been  deposited.     And  at  Ecbatana,  the  royal  ["^uon 
palace  in  the  province  of  Media,  a  roll  was  found,  and  in  it  by 
was  thus  written:   A  record:   In  the  first  year  of  Cyrus  the  [5^?)"^ 
king,  Cyrus  the  king  made  a  decree :    '  Concerning  the  house 
of  God  at  Jerusalem,  let  the  house  be  rebuilt,  where  they 
ofifer  sacrifices  and  bring  him  offerings  made  by  fire;    its 
height  shall  be  sixty  cubits,  and  its  breadth  sixty  cubits. 
It  shall  be  constructed  with  three  layers  of  huge  stones  and 
one  layer  of  timber ;  and  let  the  expenses  be  paid  out  of  the 
king's  treasury.     Also  let  the  gold  and  silver  vessels  of  the 
house  of  God,  which  Nebuchadnezzar  took  from  the  tem- 
ple at  Jerusalem  and  brought  to  Babylon,  be  restored  and 

37 


THE  REBUILDING  OF  THE  TEMPLE 

brought  to  the  temple  which  is  at  Jerusalem,  each  to  its 
place;  and  you  shall  put  them  in  the  house  of  God.* 

12.  His  Now  therefore,  Tattenai,  governor  of  the  province  be- 
m^d  yond  the  River,  Shethar-bozenai,  and  the  rulers  of  the 
rThe  province  beyond  the  River,  go  away  from  there;  let  the 
rebuM-  work  of  this  house  of  God  alone ;  let  the  elders  of  the  Jews 
the°^  rebuild  this  house  of  God  in  its  place.  Moreover  I  make  a 
|f™pie    decree  in  regard  to  what  you  shall  do  for  these  elders  of  the 

Jews  for  the  building  of  this  house  of  God:  that  out  of  the 
king's  wealth  from  the  tribute  of  the  province  beyond  the 
River  the  expenses  be  exactly  paid  to  these  men,  and  that 
without  delay.  And  whatever  is  needed,  both  young  bul- 
locks and  rams  and  lambs  for  burnt-offerings  to  the  God  of 
heaven,  also  wheat,  salt,  wine,  and  oil,  according  to  the 
direction  of  the  priests  at  Jerusalem,  let  it  be  given  to  them 
day  by  day  without  fail,  that  they  may  regularly  offer  sac- 
rifices of  sweet  savor  to  the  God  of  heaven,  and  pray  for  the 
life  of  the  king  and  of  his  sons.  Also  I  have  made  a  decree, 
that  whoever  shall  make  this  command  invalid,  a  beam 
shall  be  pulled  out  from  his  house,  and  he  shall  be  impaled 
upon  it,  and  his  house  shall  for  this  be  made  a  refuse  heap. 
And  the  God  who  hath  caused  his  name  to  dwell  there  shall 
overthrow  all  kings  and  peoples  who  shall  put  forth  their 
hand  to  make  invalid  the  command  or  to  destroy  the  house 
of  God  at  Jerusalem.     Exactly  will  it  be  executed. 

13.  Then  Tattenai,  the  governor  of  the  province  beyond  the 
preUon  River,  and  Shethar-bozenai,  and  their  associates  did  ex- 
tim'^tc  ^ct^y  ^s  Darius  the  kfng  had  given  command.  And  the 
('3.  '<)     elders  of  the  Jews  built  and  prospered.     And  they  finished 

the  building  according  to  the  command  of  the  God  of  Israel 
and  according  to  the  decree  of  Cyrus  and  Darius. 

I.  The  Books  of  Ezra  and  Nehemiah.  The  books  of  Ezra  and 
Nehemiah  are  the  chief  sources  of  information  regarding  Jewish  his- 
tory during  the  Persian  period.  They  fall  into  nine  general  divisions: 
(1)  the  return  of  the  Babylonian  exiles  and  the  revival  of  the  Judean 
community,  Ezra  1-4;  (2)  the  rebuilding  of  the  temple,  5-6;  (3)  Ezra's 
expedition  and  the  priestly  reformation,  8-10,  and  Nehemiah  8-10; 
(4)  Nehemiah 's  work  in  rebuilding  the  walls,  Nehemiah  l'-7°;  (5)  cen- 
sus of  the  Judean  community,  7'-»»;   (6)  measures  to  secure  the  repopu- 

38 


THE  BOOKS  OF  EZRA  AND  NEHEMIAH 

lation  of  Jerusalem,  11;  (7)  genealogy  of  the  priests  and  Levites,  12'""'; 
(8)  dedication  of  the  walls,  12"'";  and  (9)  Nehemiah's  later  reform  meas- 
ures, 12"-13^'.  It  is  evident  that  Ezra  and  Nehemiah  were  originally 
one  book,  and  that  they  come  from  the  same  author  as  I  and  II  Chron- 
icles. This  important  fact  is  demonstrated  by  the  presence  of  the  same 
marked  characteristics  of  thought  and  literary  style  in  both  of  these 
books.  The  closing  verses  of  II  Chronicles  are  also  repeated  verbatim 
at  the  beginning  of  Ezra. 

Throughout  these  books  the  interest  is  religious  and  ceremonial 
rather  than  civil  and  national.  They  constitute  in  reality  a  history  of 
the  Jerusalem  temple  and  its  institutions.  The  whole  may  properly 
be  designated  as  the  "Ecclesiastical  History  of  Jerusalem."  It  traces 
the  history  of  Jerusalem  and  the  southern  kingdom  from  the  earliest 
times  to  the  close  of  the  Persian  period.  Its  author,  who  is  commonly 
known  as  the  Chronicler,  evidendy  lived  during  the  earlier  part  or 
middle  of  the  Greek  period.  Certain  characteristics  of  his  literary 
style  and  point  of  view  indicate  that  he  wrote  about  250  B.C.  His 
peculiarities  and  methods  of  writing  are  clearly  revealed  by  a  compar- 
ison of  the  older  parallel  history  of  Samuel-Kings  with  the  books  of 
Chronicles.  In  general  he  lacks  the  historical  spirit  and  perspective  of 
the  earlier  prophetic  historians.  He  also  freely  recasts  his  record  of 
earlier  events  in  order  to  bring  it  into  accord  with  the  traditions  current 
in  his  own  day.  Above  all  he  aimed  to  establish  the  authority  and 
prestige  of  the  Jerusalem  temple,  and  to  prove  that  Jehovah  "was  not 
with  Israel"  (II  Chron.  25'),  which  was  represented  in  his  day  by 
the  hated  Samaritans.  The  hatred  engendered  by  the  Samari'tan  feud 
explains  many  of  the  peculiarities  of  the  Chronicler.  He  was,  in  fact, 
an  apologist  rather  than  a  historian.  Thus  post-exilic  institutions,  as, 
for  example,  the  temple  song  service  with  its  guilds  of  singers,  are 
projected  V)ackward  even  to  the  days  of  David,  and  the  events  of  early 
Hebrew  history  are  constantly  glorified.  The  numbers  found  in  the 
earlier,  prophetic  sources  are  magnified,  and  at  every  point  it  is  easy  to 
recognize  the  influence  of  the  Chronicler's  familiarity  with  the  splendor 
and  magnificence  of  the  great  Persian  and  Greek  empires,  and  of  his 
desire  to  inspire  his  fellow-Jews  with  national  pride  and  with  loyalty  to 
their  religious  institutions. 

11.  The  Chronicler's  Conception  of  the  Restoration.  Fortu- 
nately the  Chronicler  did  not  depend  entirely  upon  traditions  current  in 
his  day,  or  upon  his  own  conceptions  of  the  early  history,  but  quoted 
freely  from  earlier  sources.     As  a  result  a  large  portion  of  the  prophetic 

39 


THE  REBUILDING  OF  THE  TEMPLE 

history  of  Samuel  and  Kings  is  reproduced  verbatim  in  I  and  II 
Chronicles.  For  the  Persian  period,  regarding  which  he  is  our  chief 
authority,  he  apparently  quoted  from  three  or  four  documents.  In 
Ezra  4'"^^  is  found  a  brief  description  in  Aramaic  of  the  opposition  of 
Judah's  neighbors  to  the  rebuilding  of  the  walls,  probably  in  the  days 
of  Xehemiah.  In  Ezra  5  and  6  there  is  another  long  quotation  from 
an  Aramaic  document  that  describes  a  similar  attempt  to  put  a  stop  to 
the  rebuilding  of  the  temple  in  the  days  of  Haggai  and  Zechariah. 
The  Chronicler  evidently  believed  that  the  second  temple  was  rebuilt, 
not  by  the  people  of  the  land  to  whom  Haggai  and  Zechariah  spoke, 
but  by  Jewish  exiles  who  on  the  accession  of  Cyrus  had  returned  in 
great  numbers  from  Babylon.  He  assumed  that  Judah  had  been  de- 
populated during  the  Babylonian  exile,  and  that  the  only  people  left  in 
Palestine  were  the  heathen  and  the  hated  Samaritans.  He  also  pictures 
the  return  of  the  exiles,  not  as  that  of  a  handful  of  courageous  patriots, 
but  of  a  vasL  company  laden  with  rich  gifts  and  guarded  by  Persian 
soldiers. 

A  careful  examination  of  Ezra  2,  which  purports  to  contain  the  list 
of  the  42,360  exiles  who  returned  immediately  after  538  B.C.,  quickly 
demonstrates  that,  like  its  duplicate  in  Nehemiah  7"'",  its  historical 
basis,  if  it  has  any  outside  the  fertile  imagination  of  the  Chronicler,  is 
a  census  of  the  Judean  community.  This  census  was  taken,  not  at  the  be- 
ginning, but  rather  at  the  end  of  the  Persian  period.  Thus  in  the  list  of 
the  leaders  appear  the  names  not  only  of  Joshua  and  Zerubbabel,  but 
also  of  Nehemiah  and  Ezra  (Azariah).  Certain  leaders,  such  as  Mor- 
decai  and  Bigvai,  bear  Persian  names  which  clearly  imply  that  they  lived 
far  down  in  the  Persian  period.  The  family  of  the  high  priest  Joshua 
already  numbers  nine  hundred  and  ninety-three.  In  this  census  are  also 
included  the  inhabitants  of  many  towns  outside  Jerusalem,  as,  for  ex- 
ample, Jericho,  Gibeon,  and  Bethlehem.  Moreover,  certain  towns  are 
mentioned,  such  as  Lud  and  Ono,  which  were  not  added  to  the  Judean 
community  until  the  latter  part  of  the  Persian  period.  In  view  of  these 
facts  and  the  unmistakable  implications  in  the  sermons  of  Haggai  and 
Zechariah  that  in  their  day  there  had  been  no  general  return  of  their 
kinsmen  from  Babylon,  the  prevailing  popular  interpretation  of  this 
period  of  Israel's  history  is  clearly  untenable  and  misleading.  If  there 
was  a  general  return  of  exiles  from  Babylon,  it  certainly  did  not  come 
until  after  the  walls  had  been  rebuilt  under  the  inspiring  leadership  of 
Nehemiah.  The  Jews  to  whom  Haggai  and  Zechariah  preached,  and 
who  rebuilt  the  second  temple,  were  the  people  of  the  land  who  had  sur* 

40 


THE  RESTORATION 

vived  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  or  else  had  returned  from  their 
temporary  refuge  on  the  borders  of  the  land  of  Egypt. 

III.  Convulsions  in  the  Persian  Empire.  After  a  brilliant  and 
successful  reign  Cyrus  died  in  529  B.C.,  leaving  his  vast  empire  to  his 
son  Cambyses.  The  new  king  lacked  the  wisdom  and  statesmanship 
of  his  father,  but  inherited  his  love  of  conquest.  Most  of  his  short 
reign  was  devoted  to  the  conquest  of  Egypt.  From  their  hill-tops  the 
Jews  doubtless  witnessed  the  march  of  the  great  armies  of  Persia,  and 
were  forced  to  contribute  to  their  support.  It  was  a  period  of  change 
and  transition,  when  old  empires  went  down  in  ruin  and  new  forces 
gained  the  ascendancy. 

On  his  return  from  Egypt,  Cambyses,  finding  a  pretender  contend- 
ing for  the  throne,  committed  suicide,  thus  lea\'ing  the  empire  with- 
out any  legitimate  head.  During  this  crisis,  in  the  autumn  of  521 
B.C.,  a  Persian  noble,  Darius,  was  raised  to  the  kingship  by  conspira- 
tors, who  had  slain  the  pretender.  Darius  claimed  relationship  with 
the  Persian  royal  family,  and  strengthened  his  position  by  marrying 
Atossa,  the  daughter  of  Cyrus.  The  beginning  of  his  reign  was  signal- 
ized by  a  series  of  revolts  throughout  the  whole  extent  of  the  empire. 
In  Susiana  a  certain  Athrina  proclaimed  himself  king.  In  Babylonia 
a  native  prince  rallied  his  countrymen  and  assumed  the  title  of  Nebucha- 
drezzar III.  The  Median  revolt  was  led  by  a  certain  Pharaortes; 
while  among  the  Persians  themselves  a  pretender,  who  claimed  to  be 
a  son  of  Cyrus,  gained  a  wide  following.  Fortunately  for  Darius  there 
was  no  concerted  action  among  the  leaders  of  these  different  rebellions, 
so  that  he  was  able  to  subdue  them  in  succession ;  but  to  the  ordinary 
on-looker  the  task  seemed  wellnigh  impossible.  Not  until  the  spring  of 
519  did  Darius  become  fully  master  of  the  situation. 

IV.  Haggai's  Effective  Addresses.  It  was  in  the  autumn  of  520 
B.C.,  when  the  rebellions  in  the  Persian  Empire  were  at  their  height, 
that  Haggai  made  his  stirring  appeal  to  the  members  of  the  Judean 
community.  From  the  references  in  his  addresses  and  in  those  of  his 
contemporary,  Zechariah,  it  is  evident  that  he  and  his  hearers  were 
profoundly  influenced  by  these  great  world  movements.  The  situa- 
tion seemed  to  give  promise  not  only  of  deliverance  from  Persian  rule, 
but  an  opportunity  at  last  to  realize  the  national  hopes  of  the  Jewish 
race.  Haggai's  message  was  simple,  direct,  and  practical.  According 
to  the  belief  suniversally  accepted  in  his  day  his  logic  was  unanswer- 
able. On  the  one  hand  Jehovah,  through  poor  crops  and  hard  times,  had 
plainly  showed  his  displeasure  with  his  people  in  Judah.    The  reason 

41 


THE  REBUILDING  OF  THE  TEMPLE 

was  obvious;  although  they  had  built  comfortable  houses  for  themselres, 
Jehovah's  temple  still  lay  in  ruins.  If  they  would  win  his  favor,  it  was 
plainly  their  duty  to  arise  and  rebuild  his  sanctuary.  The  upheavals 
in  the  Persian  Empire  also  gave  promise  that,  if  they  were  true  to  their 
divine  King,  he  would  at  last  fulfil  the  predictions  voiced  by  their  earlier 
prophets. 

The  words  of  Haggai,  uttered  in  September  of  520,  met  with  an  im- 
mediate response.  Work  was  begun  on  tne  temple  in  October  of  the 
same  year.  When  the  energy  and  enthusiasm  of  the  builders  began  to 
wane,  the  prophet  appeared  before  them  again  in  November  of  520 
with  the  declaration  that  Jehovah  was  about  to  overthrow  the  great 
world  powers  and  to  destroy  the  chariots,  horses,  and  riders  of  their 
Persian  masters,  "each  by  the  sword  of  his  brother."  He  also  voiced 
the  popular  expectations  that  centred  in  Zerubbabel,  who  had  already 
been  appointed  governor  of  Judah.  The  prophet  declared  boldly  that 
this  scion  of  the  house  of  David  would  be  Jehovah's  seal-ring,  the 
earthly  representative  of  that  divine  power  which  was  about  to  work 
great  revolutions  in  the  history  of  the  world.  During  the  same  period 
Zechariah  also  uttered  his  messages  of  encouragement  and  spurred  the 
people  on  to  continued  efforts  (§  XCV). 

V.  The  Attempt  to  Stop  the  Rebuilding  of  the  Temple.  The 
Aramaic  document  preserved  in  Ezra  5  and  6  describes  in  detail  an 
attempt  of  the  Persian  governor,  who  ruled  over  the  province  west  of 
the  Euphrates,  to  put  a  stop  to  the  temple  building.  The  narrative,  the 
letter,  and  decrees  which  it  contains  reveal  at  many  points  their  Jewish 
origin.  While  the  tradition  may  be  comparatively  late,  its  circumstan- 
tial character  favors  the  conclusion  that  it  preserves  the  memory  of  a 
definite  historical  event.  The  action  of  the  Jews  in  rebuilding  their  tem- 
ple was  in  perfect  accord  with  the  policy  of  Cyrus  and  also  of  Darius, 
as  is  shown  by  contemporary  inscriptions.  The  attempt,  therefore,  to 
stop  the  building  of  the  temple  failed;  and  in  516  B.C.,  four  years  after 
the  work  was  begun,  it  was  completed. 

VI.  The  Significance  of  the  Restoration  of  the  Temple.  The 
rebuilding  of  the  Jerusalem  temple  appears  to  have  been  of  immediate 
significance  chiefly  to  the  Jews  of  Palestine.  The  Jews  of  Egypt,  or  at 
least  those  of  Elephantine,  had  their  own  temple.  From  Zechariah 
6*""  it  is  evident  that  the  Jewish  exiles  in  Babylon  sent  certain  gifts 
to  the  Jerusalem  temple;  but  the  hundreds  of  miles  of  desert  that  in- 
tervened made  communication  exceedingly  difficult,  so  that  except  at 
rare  intervals  there  was  apparently  little  interchange  between  Baby- 

i2 


THE  RESTORATION  OF  THE  TEMPLE 

Ionia  and  Palestine.  For  all  Jews,  however,  the  rebuilding  of  the  tenaple 
meant  that  at  last  they  had  a  common  rallying-place,  and  that  Jehovah 
was  again  being  worshipped  by  his  own  people  at  his  traditional  place 
of  abode.  In  a  sense  it  bridged  the  seventy  years  that  had  intervened 
since  the  destruction  of  the  pre-exilic  Hebrew  state,  and  made  it  possible 
to  revive  the  ancient  religious  customs.  In  time  it  attracted  from  the 
lands  of  the  dispersion  patriotic  Jews  whose  interest  was  fixed  upon 
the  ceremonial  side  of  their  religious  life.  It  also  furnished  a  centre 
about  which  gradually  grew  up  a  hierarchy  with  an  increasingly  elab- 
orate ritual,  and  a  body  of  laws  which  ultimately  became  the  character- 
istic features  of  Judaism. 

§XCV.     ZECHARIAH'S  VISIONS  AND   ENCOURAGING 
ADDRESSES 

In  the  twenty-fourth  day  of  the  eleventh  month  [Feb-  i 
ruary],  in  the  second  year  of  Darius  [519  B.C.],  this  word  of 
Jehovah  came  to  the  prophet  Zechariah,  the  son  of  Bere- 
chiah,  the  son  of  Iddo :  I  saw  in  the  night  and  there  was  a  (Zech 
man  standing  among  the  myrtle  trees  that  were  in  the  '"^ 
valley-bottom,  and  behind  him  there  were  horses,  red, 
sorrel,  and  white.  Then  said  I,  O  my  Lord,  what  are  these? 
And  the  angel  who  talked  with  me  said  to  me,  I  will  show 
you  what  these  are.  And  the  man  who  was  standing 
among  the  myrtle  trees  answered  and  said.  These  are  they 
whom  Jehovah  hath  sent  to  go  to  and  fro  through  the 
earth.  And  they  answered  the  angel  of  Jehovah  who  was 
standing  among  the  myrtle  trees  and  said.  We  have  gone 
up  and  down  through  the  earth  and  behold,  all  the  earth  is 
still  and  at  peace. 

Then  the  angel  of  Jehovah  answered  and  said,  0  Jeho-  2.  je 
vah  of  hosts,  how  long  hast  thou  no  pity  on  Jerusalem  and 
the  cities  of  Judah  with  which  thou  hast  been  wroth  these 
seventy   years?     And   Jehovah    answered    the    angel    who  ait  and 


Report 
of  uni- 
versal 
peace 


hovah's 
prom- 
ise yet 
to  ex- 


was  talking  with  me  with  good  words,  even  comforting  hifhoiy 
words.     So  the  angel  who  was  talking  with  me  said  to  me,  [;ijj^ 
Proclaim  now,  'Thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts:    "I  am  jeal- 
ous for  Jerusalem  and  for  Zion  with  a  great  jealousy.     But 
with  great  wrath  am  I  wroth  with  the  arrogant  nations; 
for  I  was  only  a  little  angry  [with  Israel],  but  they  helped 

43 


ZECHARIAH'S  VISIONS 

to  make  greater  the  calamity."  Therefore,  thus  saith  Je- 
hovah: "I  am  turning  to  show  mercy  to  Jerusalem;  my 
temple  shall  be  built  in  it,"  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts,  "  and 
a  measuring  line  shall  be  stretched  over  Jerusalem,  Pro- 
claim again.  Thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts:  My  cities  shall 
yet  overflow  with  prosperity;  and  Jehovah  shall  yet  com- 
fort Zion  and  choose  Jerusalem."  ' 

Now  I  lifted  up  mine  eyes  and  looked,  and  there  were 
four  horns.  And  I  said  to  the  angel  who  was  talking  with 
me,  'What  are  these?*  And  he  assured  me,  'These  are 
the  horns  with  which  he  scattered  Judah.* 

Then  Jehovah  showed  me  four  smiths.  And  I  said, 
What  are  these  coming  to  do?  And  he  said.  These  are  the 
horns  which  scattered  Judah,  so  that  none  lifted  up  his 
head;  but  these  are  come  to  terrify  them,  to  strike  down 
the  horns  of  the  nations,  which  lifted  up  their  horn  against 
the  land  of  Judah  to  scatter  it. 

Then  I  lifted  up  mine  eyes,  and  looked,  and  there  was 
a  man  with  a  measuring  line  in  his  hand.  Then  I  said. 
Where  are  you  going?  And  he  said  to  me.  To  measure 
Jerusalem,  to  see  what  is  its  breadth  and  length.  There- 
upon the  angel  who  talked  with  me  stood  still,  and  another 
angel  went  out  to  meet  him,  and  said  to  him,  Run,  speak 
to  this  young  man,  saying,  'Jerusalem  shall  be  inhabited 
as  villages  without  walls,  because  of  the  multitude  of  men 
and  cattle  in  her  midst.  For  I,'  saith  Jehovah,  'will  be  a 
wall  of  fire  round  about  her,  and  I  will  be  the  glory  in  the 
midst  of  her.' 

Ho,   ho,   flee  from  the  land  of  the  north,   is  Jehovah's 
oracle. 

For  I  have  spread  you  abroad  as  the  four  winds  of  the  heav- 
ens, is  Jehovah's  oracle. 

Ho,  escape  to  Zion,  ye  who  dwell  in  Babylon. 

For  thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts  to  the  nations  which  plun- 
dered you: 

He  that  toucheth  you  toucheth  the  apple  of  mine  eye. 

For,  behold,  I  am  about  to  shake  my  hand  over  them, 

And  they  shall  be  a  spoil  to  those  who  served  them; 

And  ye  shall  know  that  Jehovah  of  hosts  hath  sent  me. 

44 


his 
people 


pol- 
luted 
priest- 
ood 


ZECHARIAH'S  VISIONS 

Sing  and  rejoice,  O  daughter  of  Zion,  for,  lo,  I  come,        7.  Je^ 
And    I   will    dwell    in    the   midst   of   thee,    is   Jehovah's  retura^ 

^^^^^^-  dwell 

And  many  nations  shall  join  themselves  to  Jehovah  in  that  among 

day, 
And  shall  be  his  people,  and  he  will  dwell  in  the  midst  of 

thee, 
And  thou  shalt  know  that  Jehovah  of  hosts  hath  sent  me  to 

thee. 
And  Jehovah  shall  inherit  Judah  as  his  portion  in  the  holy 

land, 
And  he  shall  yet  comfort  Zion  and  choose  Jerusalem. 
Be  silent,  all  flesh,  before  Jehovah ; 
For  he  hath  waked  up  out  of  his  holy  habitation. 

Then  he  showed  me  Joshua,  the  high  priest,  standing  8.  The 
before  the  angel  of  Jehovah  and  the  adversary  standing  at 
his  right  hand  to  accuse  him.  And  the  angel  of  Jehovah 
said  to  the  adversary,  Jehovah  rebuke  thee,  O  adversary;  and 
yea,  Jehovah,  who  hath  chosen  Jerusalem,  rebuke  thee. 
Is  not  this  a  brand  plucked  out  of  the  fire?  Now  Joshua 
was  clothed  with  filthy  garments  and  was  standing  before 
the  angel. 

And  [the  angel]  answered  and  spoke  to  those  who  stood  9. 
before  him,  saying,  Take  the  filthy  garments  from  off  him,  Jecon- 
and  clothe  him  with  robes  of  state ;  set  a  clean  turban  upon  ^ecra- 
his  head.     So  they  set  a  clean  turban  upon  his  head,  and  (<■«) 
clothed  him  with  garments ;  and  the  angel  of  Jehovah  was 
standing  by. 

And  the  angel  of  Jehovah  testified  to  Joshua,  saying,   lo. 
Thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts:  'If  thou  wilt  walk  in  my  ?e°°" 
ways,  and  if  thou  wilt  keep  my  charge,  then  thou  also  shalt  ^^^^^ 
rule  my  house  and  shalt  also  keep  my  courts  and  I  will  give  ushed 
thee  a  place  of  access  among  these  who  stand  by.     Hear  and^ 
now,  0  Joshua  the  high  priest,  thou  and  thy  associates  ^1^"^^- 
who  sit  before  me;  for  they  are  men  who  are  a  sign;   for  («-'») 
behold,  I  am  about  to  bring  forth  my  servant  the  Branch. 
For,  behold,  the  stone  that  I  have  set  before  Joshua ;  upon 
one  stone  are  seven  facets:   behold,  I  will  engrave  it,'  saith 
Jehovah  of  hosts,  'and  I  will  remove  the  iniquity  of  that 

45 


nation 
(3' -3) 


ZECHAllIAH'S  VISIONS 

land  in  one  day.  In  that  day,'  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts,  *ye 
shall  each  invite  his  neighbor  under  the  vine  and  under  the 
fig  tree.' 

Then  the  angel  who  talked  with  me  came  again  and 
waked  me,  as  a  man  who  is  wakened  out  of  his  sleep. 
And  he  said  to  me.  What  seest  thou?  And  I  said,  I  see 
there  a  candlestick,  all  of  gold,  with  a  bowl  upon  the  top  of 
it,  and  its  seven  lamps  upon  it;  there  are  seven  pipes  to 
each  of  the  lamps,  which  are  upon  the  top  of  it,  and  two 
olive  trees  by  it,  one  on  the  right  side  of  the  bowl,  and  the 
other  on  its  left  side.  And  I  spoke  and  said  to  the  angel 
who  talked  with  me.  What  are  these,  my  lord?  Then 
the  angel  who  talked  with  me  answered  and  said  to  me, 
Knowest  thou  not  what  these  are?  And  I  said.  No,  my 
lord.  Then  he  answered  and  spoke  to  me,  saying.  The 
eyes  of  Jehovah,  which  rove  to  and  fro  through  the  whole 
earth. 

Then  I  answered,  and  said  to  him.  What  are  these  two 
olive  trees  upon  the  right  side  of  the  candlestick  and  upon 
its  left  side?  And  he  answered  me  and  said,  Knowest  thou 
not  what  these  are?  And  I  said.  No,  my  lord.  Then  said 
he.  These  are  the  two  anointed  ones,  who  stand  by  the  Lord 
of  the  whole  earth. 

13.  This  is  the  word  of  Jehovah  regarding  Zerubbabel,  Not 
blbei'"    by  might,  nor  by  power,  but  by  my  spirit,  saith  Jehovah  of 
t-j^^om-  hosts,  will  I  make  the  great  mountain  before  Zerubbabel  a 
thi*'      plain;   and  he  shall  bring  forth  the  top  stones  with  shout- 
(s^b'^P)^    ings  of,  *  Grace,  grace,  to  it.'     Moreover  this  word  of  Jeho- 
vah came  to  me:    The  hands  of  Zerubbabel  have  laid  the 
foundations  of  this  temple;   his  hands  shall  also  finish  it; 
and  ye  shall  know  that  Jehovah  of  hosts  hath  sent  me  to 
you.     For  who  hath  despised  the  day  of  small  things?  for 
they  shall  rejoice,  and  shall  see  the  plummet  in  the  hand 
of  Zerubbabel. 

14.  Now  this  word  of  Jehovah  came  to  me:   Take  of  them 
Making  ^£  ^j^g  captivity,  even  of  Heldai,  of  Tobijah,  of  Jedaiah  and 
(C^-Yn     of  Josiah  the  son  of  Zephaniah  who  have  come  from  Baby- 
lon, yea,  take  of  them  silver  and  gold  in  order  to  make  a 
crown  and  set  it  on  the  head  of  Zerubbabel  the  son  of 
Shealtiel. 

46 


asK3 
not  for 
formal 
wor- 


ZECHARIAH'S  VISIONS 

Thou  ehalt  also  say  to  them:    *Thus  saith  Jehovah  of  is. 
hosts:  "Behold,  the  man  whose  name  is  the  Branch;  and  tions" 
he  shall  grow  up  out  of  his  place;   and  he  shall  build  the  pg"„"in„ 
temple  of  Jehovah;   and  he  shall  bear  the  glory  and  shall  the 
sit  and  rule  upon  his  throne ;  and  Joshua  the  son  of  Jehoz-  I'eruV 
adak  shall  be  a  priest  upon  his  right,  and  the  counsel  of  J^uig®'^ 
peace  shall  be  between  them  both.     And  the  crown  shall  be  C"^) 
to  Heldai  and  Tobijah  and  Jedaiah,  and  Josiah  the  son  of 
Zephaniah,  as  a  memorial  in  the  temple  of  Jehovah.     And 
they  who  are  far  off  shall  come  and  build  in  the  temple  of 
Jehovah;    and  ye  shall  know  that  Jehovah  of  hosts  hath 
sent  me  to  you.     And  this  shall  come  to  pass,  if  ye  will 
diligently  obey  the  voice  of  Jehovah  your  God.'" 

In  the  fourth  year  of  King  Darius,  on  the  fourth  day  of  i^.  Je- 
the  ninth  month,  the  city  of  Bethel  sent  Sharezer  and  Re- 
gemmelech  and  their  men,  to  entreat  the  favor  of  Jehovah, 
and  to  speak  to  the  priests  of  the  house  of  Jehovah  of  hosts, 
and  to  the  prophets,  saying,  should  I  weep  in  the  fifth  (t'S) 
month  [in  memory  of  the  destruction  of  the  temple]  sepa- 
rating myself,  as  I  have  done  these  many  years?  Then  this 
word  of  Jehovah  of  hosts  came  to  me:  Speak  to  all  the 
people  of  the  land,  and  to  the  priests,  saying,  'When  ye 
fasted  and  mourned  in  the  fifth  and  in  the  seventh  month 
[when  Gedaliah  was  murdered],  even  these  seventy  years, 
did  ye  at  all  fast  to  me,  even  to  me?  And  when  ye  eat  and 
when  ye  drink,  do  ye  not  eat  for  yourselves,  and  drink  for 
yourselves? 

Should  ye  not  hear  these  words  which  Jehovah  cried  by  i7. 
the  former  prophets,  when  Jerusalem  was  inhabited  and  in  ^"^^ 
prosperity,  and  her  cities  round  about  her,  and  the  South  deeds 
Country,  and  the  lowland  were  inhabited?     Execute  true  ticeand 
judgment,  and  show  kindness  and  pity  each  to  his  brother;  ^^uy^ 
and  oppress  not  the  widow  nor  the  fatherless,  the  resident 
alien  nor  the  poor;   and  let  none  of  you  devise  evil  against 
your  brother  in  his  heart.     But  they  refused  to  heed,  and 
turned  a  stubborn  shoulder,  and  stopped  their  ears,  that 
they  might  not  hear.     Yea,  they  made  their  hearts  as  an 
adamant  lest  they  should  hear  the  teaching,  and  the  words 
which  Jehovah  of  hosts  had  sent  by  his  spirit  through  the 
former  prophets.     Therefore  there  came  great  wrath  from 

47 


ZECHARIAH'S  VISIONS 

Jehovah  of  hosts.  And  even  when  I  cried  they  would  not 
hear,  so  when  they  cried  I  did  not  hear,  saith  Jehovah  of 
hosts.  And  I  scattered  them  by  a  whirlwind  among  the  na- 
tions which  they  did  not  know.  Thus  the  land  was  left 
desolate  behind  them,  so  that  no  man  passed  to  or  fro ;  for 
they  made  the  pleasant  land  a  desolation. 

Now  this  word  of  Jehovah  of  hosts  came  to  me; 

Thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts, 

*I  cherish  for  Zion  a  great  jealousy, 

And  I  am  jealous  for  her  with  great  indignation.* 

Thus  saith  Jehovah,  *I  have  returned  to  Zion, 

And  will  dwell  in  the  midst  of  Jerusalem; 

And  Jerusalem  shall  be  called,  "The  City  of  Truth;" 

And  the  mountain  of  Jehovah  of  hosts,  "  The  Holy  Moun- 
tain." ' 

Thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts: 

*  Old  men  and  old  women  shall  again  sit  in  the  broad  places 
of  Jerusalem, 

Each  man  with  his  staff  in  his  hand  because  of  old  age. 

And  the  streets  of  the  city  shall  be  full  of  boys, 

And  of  girls  playing  in  its  broad  places.' 

Thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts: 

Because  it  seemeth  impossible  to  the  remnant  of  this  people. 

Is  it  also  impossible  for  me?  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts. 

Thus  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts: 

I  am  about  to  rescue  my  people, 

From  the  land  of  the  east  and  the  land  of  the  west. 

And  I  will  bring  them  and  they  shall  dwell  in  the  midst  of 

Jerusalem. 
And  they  shall  be  my  people  in  truth  and  righteousness, 
And  in  turn  I  will  be  their  God. 

I.  Zechariah's  Ancestry  and  Point  of  View.  Haggai's  contem- 
porary, the  prophet  Zechariah,  was  evidently  a  priest.  In  the  genealogy 
of  Nehemiah  12^,  it  is  stated  that  he  belonged  to  the  priestly  family  of 
Iddo.  This  conclusion  is  confirmed  by  the  character  of  his  prophecies. 
Like  the  priest-prophet  Ezekiel  he  is  exceedingly  fond  of  apocalyptic 
symbolism.    He  is  also  deeply  interested  in  the  priesthood  and  in  its 

48 


ZECHARIAH'S  ANCESTRY  AND  POINT  OF  VIEW 

ceremonial  purity.  Furthermore,  it  is  exceedingly  probable  that  he 
was  a  descendant  of  one  of  the  many  priests  carried  as  exiles  to  Baby- 
lon. This  is  shown  by  his  keen  interest  in  and  exact  knowledge  of  the 
great  political  movements  that  were  then  shaking  the  Persian  Empire. 
His  conception  of  Jehovah  is  also  strongly  influenced  by  the  analogies 
drawn  from  the  Persian  court.  In  his  thought  Israel's  God  is  a  tran- 
scendental ruler,  who  communicates  with  his  subjects  not  directly,  but 
through  angelic  messengers,  and  who,  like  the  Persian  kings,  is  depend- 
ent for  information  regarding  his  great  kingdom  upon  the  reports  of 
the  different  members  of  his  heavenly  court.  Thus  Zechariah  marks 
a  wide  departure  from  the  simple  theology  of  the  pre-exilic  prophets 
who  thought  of  Jehovah  as  dwelling  in  the  midst  of  his  people  and  com- 
municating directly  with  all  who  turned  to  him  in  faith. 

II.  The  Book  of  Zechariah.  The  book  which  records  the  prophet's 
sermons  contains  four  distinct  divisions:  (1)  An  exhortation  addressed 
to  the  people  in  December,  520,  three  months  after  Haggai  first  ap- 
pealed to  them  to  rise  and  rebuild  the  temple,  Zechariah  T'*;  (2)  sym- 
bolic visions  dealing  with  the  problems  in  the  Judean  community,  l'-6*; 
(3)  practical  counsel,  exhortations,  and  promises,  6'-S-^;  (4)  a  later 
appendix  coming  from  a  prophet  who  probably  lived  during  the  ear- 
lier part  of  the  Maccabean  period,  9-14.  All  of  Zechariah's  recorded 
sermons  probably  date  from  the  three  or  four  years  between  520  and 
516  B.C.,  during  which  the  temple  was  being  rebuilt.  They  throw  a 
remarkably  clear  light  upon  an  exceedingly  critical  and  significant 
period  in  the  life  of  the  Jews  of  Palestine.  They  are  also  in  many  ways 
the  best  Old  Testament  source  for  the  study  of  the  unfolding  of  Israel's 
messianic  hopes. 

III.  Problems  and  Hopes  of  the  Judean  Community.  Four  or 
five  practical  problems  confronted  and  disturbed  the  temple-builders. 
The  first  was:  Would  Jerusalem  and  the  temple,  still  without  walls,  be 
protected  from  the  attack  of  the  hostile  foes  that  encircled  them.  A 
second  and  larger  question  was:  What  was  to  be  the  outcome  of  the 
great  tempest  through  which  the  Persian  Empire  was  passing,  and  did 
it  mean  for  the  Jews  deliverance  from  the  powerful  conquerors  who 
for  centuries  had  oppressed  and  crushed  them  ?  The  third  was:  Would 
the  necessarily  modest  service  of  the  restored  temple,  already  sadly  pol- 
luted by  heathen  hands,  be  acceptable  to  Jehovah  ?  Another  problem 
was:  \\Tiat  were  the  relations  and  the  respective  duties  of  Zerubbabel 
and  Joshua,  the  civil  and  religious  authorities  in  the  community  ?  It  was 
also  inevitable  that  at  this  time  the  hope  of  securing  their  independence 


ZECHARIAH'S  VISIONS 

under  the  leadership  of  Zerubbabel  should  come  prominently  to  the 
front.  To  each  of  these  problems  Zechariah  addressed  himself,  and 
his  book  records  his  convictions  and  public  utterances. 

IV.  Zechariah's  Assurances  of  Jehovah's  Care.  In  his  initial 
vision  concerning  the  angelic  horsemen  he  recognizes  that  the  storms 
that  have  swept  over  the  Persian  Empire  are  beginning  to  subside,  but 
he  tells  his  fellow-laborers  that,  if  they  persist,  Jehovah's  temple  shall  be 
rebuilt  and  that  the  lands  about  Jerusalem  shall  again  be  sold  to  eager 
buyers,  and  the  cities  of  Judah  shall  enjoy  their  former  prosperity,  for 
"Jehovah  will  surely  comfort  Zion."  In  the  vision  of  the  four  horns 
and  of  the  four  smiths  whose  mission  it  is  to  smite  the  horns,  he  assures 
the  people  that  Jehovah  in  his  good  time  and  way  will  overthrow  (he 
nations  that  now  wrong  and  oppress  them.  Although  there  is  no  promise 
that  Jerusalem  will  be  surrounded  by  walls,  he  declares  that  it  shall  en- 
joy a  prosperity  and  a  growth  which  no  walls  can  confine,  and  that 
Jehovah  himself  will  be  its  protection,  as  well  as  its  glory,  that  he  will 
gather  the  scattered  exiles,  and  that  they,  together  with  the  nations 
whick  shall  acknowledge  Jehovah's  rule,  shall  yet  come  streaming  back 
to  Judah. 

In  his  next  vision  the  prophet  graphically  presents  a  scene  in  Jeho- 
vah's court.  Joshua  the  priest,  representing  the  ceremonial  service  of 
the  polluted  temple,  is  charged  by  the  adversary  with  uncleanness. 
Here  for  the  first  time  in  Hebrew  literature  we  catch  a  glimpse  of 
Satan,  who  is  regarded  not  as  hostile  to  God  but  as  the  prosecuting 
attorney  of  heaven.  As  in  the  prologue  of  the  book  of  Job,  he  is  an 
accredited  member  of  the  divine  hierarchy.  His  task  is  to  search  out 
and  report  to  Jehovah  the  misdeeds  of  men.  In  Zechariah's  vision, 
however,  the  divine  judge  acquits  Joshua  of  the  charge,  and  causes  him 
to  be  clad  with  clean  garments,  thus  proclaiming  the  divine  approval  of 
the  modest  yet  devoted  service  of  the  Judean  community. 

V.  Preparations  for  the  Crowning  of  Zerubbabel.  Regarding 
Zerubbabel,  Zechariah  declares,  in  language  highly  figurative,  that  he 
shall  yet  be  crowned  and  rule  over  a  happy  and  prosperous  people. 
He  is  spoken  of  as  Jehovah's  servant,  the  Branch.  The  term  is  prob- 
ably original  with  Zechariah,  although  again  used  in  the  supplementary 
passages  in  Jeremiah  23^  and  33'^  The  word  is  akin  to  the  terra 
"shoot  of  the  house  of  Jesse"  used  in  Isaiah  11,  to  describe  a  certain 
scion  of  the  house  of  David,  who  in  all  probability  was  the  young  Zerub- 
babel. Zechariah's  figure  describes  the  prince  as  an  offshoot  of  the 
same  royal  tree.     The  obscure  passage  seems  to  mean  that  upon  the 

50 


THE  CROWNING  OF  ZERUBBABEL 

stone,  with  its  seven  facets,  which  was  to  be  set  in  the  crown  prepared 
for  the  head  of  Zerubbabel,  Jehovah  himself  would  engrave  a  fitting 
title. 

In  Zechariah's  fifth  vision  he  defined  the  relations  between  the  civil 
and  priestly  authorities.  The  golden  candlestick  represented  the  temple 
and  its  service.  The  two  olive  trees  beside  it  stood  for  Zerubbabel,  the 
civil  ruler,  and  for  Joshua,  the  high  priest.  The  duty  of  each  was  to 
contribute  his  part  toward  the  support  of  the  temple  service.  They 
were  both  Jehovah's  Messiahs,  that  is,  men  anointed  as  a  symbol  of  the 
task  which  each  was  to  perform. 

In  this  connection  Zechariah  declared  that  Jehovah  would  remove  all 
obstacles  from  before  Zerubbabel,  and  that  he  who  had  begun  the  work 
should  live  to  see  its  completion.  In  an  address  recorded  in  the  latter 
part  of  the  sixth  chapter  of  his  prophecy  (intentionally  revised  by  a 
later  scribe),  Zechariah  threw  aside  all  s}Tnbolism  and  gave  directions 
to  make  a  crown  for  the  head  of  Zerubbabel  from  the  silver  and  gold 
that  had  been  brought  as  a  gift  by  a  deputation  from  the  Jews  of  Baby- 
lon. He  also  plainly  predicted  that  this  descendant  of  David  should 
sit  on  the  throne  of  Judah  and  that  Joshua  the  priest  should  be  his 
minister  like  the  priests  in  the  pre-exilic  kingdom. 

VI.  Disappointment  of  These  Patriotic  Hopes.  With  Zechariah's 
prediction  that  Zerubbabel  should  reign  on  the  throne  of  Judah  the 
descendants  of  the  house  of  David  suddenly  and  forever  disappear  from 
Old  Testament  history.  Whether  the  Jews  made  the  attempt  to  shake 
off  the  yoke  of  Persia  or  whether  Zerubbabel  was  quietly  set  aside 
cannot  be  determined.  Contemporary  history  states  that  within  at 
least  six  months  after  Zechariah  voiced  the  patriotic  hopes  of  his  people 
the  authority  of  Darius  was  fully  established  throughout  the  empire. 
He  at  once  began  thoroughly  to  organize  the  vast  realm.  Post  roads 
bound  together  the  distant  provinces,  and  satraps,  appointed  largely 
from  the  ranks  of  the  royal  family,  unified  the  whole  empire  and  held  it 
under  firm  control.  As  a  rule  Persian  governors  were  substituted  for 
the  native  princes.  With  the  institution  of  this  policy  Zerubbabel  may 
well  have  been  quietly  set  aside.  The  event  evidently  made  a  pro- 
found impression  upon  the  messianic  ex'pectations  of  the  Jews.  Hence- 
forth, for  three  or  four  centuries,  the  temporal,  kingly  type  of  messianic 
hope,  which  had  been  inspired  by  the  glories  of  the  reign  of  David, 
entirely  disappeared.  It  was  not  revived  until  the  military  victories  of 
the  Maccabean  era  had  again  brought  prominently  to  the  front  this 
phase  of  national  glory  (c/.  §  cxvi).     As  a  result  of  these  disappointments 

51 


ZECHARIAH'S  VISIONS 

Israel's  hopes  were  universalized  and  spiritualized.  Jehovah,  instead 
of  a  scion  of  the  house  of  David,  was  henceforth  regarded  as  the  one 
supreme  King  of  Israel. 

VII.  Zechariah's    Later    Exhortations    and    Predictions.      In 

chapters  7  and  8,  which  conclude  the  original  sermons  of  Zechariah, 
the  apocalyptic  language  with  which  he  clothed  his  earlier  predictions 
regarding  the  future  of  the  Judean  community  disappeared,  and  he 
spoke  as  did  Amos  and  Haggai,  plainly  and  directly  regarding  the 
questions  which  were  then  stirring  the  people.  When  a  deputation 
came  from  the  north  to  inquire  whether  or  not,  now  that  the  temple 
was  being  rebuilt,  they  should  continue  to  observe  their  fasts  in  memory 
of  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  and  the  death  of  Gedaliah,  the  prophet 
raised  the  searching  question  of  whether  their  motive  in  these  services 
was  to  please  Jehovah  or  to  please  themselves.  He  then  went  on  to 
declare  that  the  only  effective  way  to  serve  Jehovah  was  by  deeds  of 
justice  and  kindness,  especially  to  the  dependent  classes  in  the  com- 
munity, and  that  the  horrors  of  the  exile  had  come  because  their  fathers 
had  failed  to  worship  Jehovah  by  righteous  deeds. 

The  prophet  concludes  with  a  brilliant  picture  of  the  coming  restora- 
tion of  Jerusalem  and  of  the  peace  and  prosperity  which  should  be  the 
lot  of  all,  because  Jehovah  was  about  to  gather  his  scattered  people 
from  the  east  and  the  west  and  to  establish  them  in  the  midst  of  his 
sacred  city.  Other  nations  should  eagerly  come  to  Jerusalem  to  seek 
the  favor  of  Jehovah  and  to  ally  themselves  with  his  faithful  followers, 
the  Jews.  In  a  prophecy,  preserved  in  Micah  4'"*  and  Isaiah  2^"* 
(which  probably  comes  from  this  period)  the  same  thought  is  nobly 
expressed: 

It  shall  come  to  pass  in  the  latter  days. 
That  the  mountain  of  Jehovah  shall  be  established, 
Even  the  house  of  our  God  on  the  top  of  the  mountain, 
And  it  shall  be  lifted  above  the  hills. 
All  the  nations  shall  flow  to  it, 
And  many  peoples  shall  go  and  say. 
Come,  let  us  go  up  to  Jehovah's  mount, 
To  the  house  of  the  God  of  Jacob, 
That  he  may  instruct  us  in  his  ways, 
And  that  we  may  walk  in  his  paths. 
For  from  Zion  proceeds  instruction, 
And  Jehovah's  word  from  Jerusalem. 
52 


ISRAEL'S  TRAINING  AND  DESTINY 

§  XCVI.   ISRAEL'S  TRAINING  AND  DESTINY 

Comfort  ye,  comfort  ye  my  people,  saith  your  God,  i.Pro- 

Speak  tenderly  to  Jerusalem,  and  declare  to  her,  |^|^.®- 

That  her  hard  service  is  accomplished,  her  guilt  is  expi-  sage  of 

,    J  i  »  o  i  com- 

ated,  fort 

That  she  hath  received  from  Jehovah's  hand  double  for  all  'j^^i%^ 
her  sins. 

A  voice  is  proclaiming:   In  the  wilderness  prepare  the  way  2. 

of  Jehovah,  f;,lPrs 

Make  straight  in  the  desert  a  highway  for  our  God!  r^to^^ 

Let  every  mountain  and  hill  sink  down,  and  every  valley  be  ration 

lifted  up,  ^''  *^ 
And  the  crooked  be  made  straight  and  the  rough  ridges  a 

plain. 

A  voice  is  saying,  Proclaim  I  and  I  said,  What  shall  I  pro-  3.  Je- 

claim?  tZf 

All  flesh  is  grass  and  all  its  beauty  like  a  flower  of  the  field.  ^^^^^^^ 

Grass  withers,  flower  fades,  when  Jehovah's  breath  blows  eternal 

•i.  »  J  ,6-8) 

upon  it,  ^   ^ 
Grass  withers,  flower  fades,  but  the  word  of  our  God  en- 
dureth  forever. 

To  a  high  mountain,  get  thee  up,  Zion's  herald  of  good  4.  An- 

~»„.^ .  nounce 

news ;  mem 

Lift  up  mightily  thy  voice,  Jerusalem's  herald   of   good  °^^^^^ 

news,  news 

Lift  up  fearlessly,  say  to  the  cities  of  Judah:   Behold  your  ^'^ 
God! 

Behold,  Jehovah  cometh  in  might,  and  his  arm  is  maintain-  5.  Je- 

ing  his  rule;  deUver- 

Behold,  his  reward  is  with  him  and  his  recompense  is  before  ^[^^^^^ 

him,  people 

As  a  shepherd  he  will  tend  his  flock,  with  his  arm  he  will  ^'°'  "^ 

gather  it, 
The  lambs  in  his  bosom  he  will  bear,  the  ewe-mothers  he 

will  lead. 

53 


ISRAEL'S  TRAINING  AND  DESTINY 

"Who  hath  measured  in  the  hollow  of  his  hand  the  watws, 

And  ruled  off  the  heavens  with  a  span, 

Or  enclosed  the  dust  of  the  earth  in  a  measure, 

And  weighed  the  mountains  in  scales, 

And  the  hills  in  a  balance? 

Who  hath  detennined  the  spirit  of  Jehovah, 

And  as  his  counsellor  advised  him? 

With  whom  hath  he  consulted  for  enlightenment, 

And  to  be  instructed  in  the  right, 

And  to  be  shown  the  way  of  discernment? 

Lo  the  nations!  as  a  drop  from  a  bucket. 

And  as  dust  on  a  balance  are  they  reckoned. 

Lo  the  isles!  as  a  mote  he  uplifteth. 

And  Lebanon  is  not  enough  for  fuel, 

And  its  wild  beasts  for  a  burnt-offering. 

All  the  nations  are  as  nothing  before  him. 

They  are  reckoned  by  him  as  void  and  nothingness. 

To  whom  then  will  ye  liken  God, 
And  what  likeness  place  beside  him? 
An  image !  a  craftsman  cast  it. 
And  a  smelter  o'erlays  it  with  gold. 
He  who  is  too  poor  to  do  this 
Chooses  a  tree  that  is  not  decayed. 
Seeks  for  himself  a  skilled  craftsman. 
To  set  up  an  image  that  shall  not  totter. 

Do  ye  not  know?     Do  ye  not  hear? 

Hath  it  not  been  told  you  from  the  beginning? 

Have  ye  not  been  aware  from  the  founding  of  the  earth? 

It  is  he  who  is  enthroned  above  the  vault  of  the  earth, 

And  its  inhabitants  are  as  locusts; 

Who  stretcheth  out  the  heavens  as  a  thin  veil, 

And  spreadeth  them  out  like  a  habitable  tent. 

It  is  he  who  bringeth  princes  to  naught. 
The  rulers  of  the  earth  he  maketh  as  waste. 
Scarcely  have  they  been  planted,  scarcely  have  they 
been  sown, 

54 


ISRAEL'S  TRAINING  AND  DESTINY 

Scarcely  hath  the  stock  taken  root  in  the  earth, 
But  he  bloweth  upon  them  and  they  wither, 
And  a  whirlwind  carries  them  away  like  stubble. 

To  whom  then  will  ye  liken  me  12. 

That  I  should  equal  him?  saith  the  Holy  One.  J^l^^ 

Lift  up  your  eyes  on  high  and  see:  t^'^> 

Who  hath  created  these? 

He  who  bringeth  forth  their  host  by  number, 

And  calleth  each  by  his  name; 

Of  the  many  mighty  and  strong, 

Not  one  is  missing. 

Why  sayest  thou,  0  Jacob,  and  speakest,  0  Israel :  13.  Je- 


My  way  is  hid  from  Jehovah 

And  my  right  is  unnoticed  by  my  God? 


hovah's 
ability 
to  save 

Hast  thou  not  known?     Hast  thou  not  heard?  people 

An  everlasting  God  is  Jehovah.  ^""^ 

The  creator  of  the  ends  of  the  earth. 
He  fainteth  not,  neither  is  weary, 
His  wisdom  cannot  be  fathomed. 
He  giveth  vigor  to  the  fainting, 
And  upon  the  powerless  he  lavisheth  strength. 
Young  men  may  faint  and  grow  weary, 
And  the  strongest  youths  may  stumble, 
But  they  who  trust  in  Jehovah  renew  their  vigor, 
They  mount  on  pinions  like  eagles, 
They  run  but  are  never  weary. 
They  walk  but  never  faint. 

Listen  to  me  in  silence,  ye  coastlands,  14.  je- 

Let  the  peoples  come  near;  then  let  them  speak;  kader-' 

Together  let  us  approach  the  tribunal.  ^^r 

Who  raised  up  that  one  from  the  east  people 

Whose  steps  victory  ever  attended,  J^t 

Giving  up  peoples  before  him,  <^''''> 

And  letting  him  trample  down  kings? 
His  sword  made  them  as  dust. 
And  his  bow  like  driven  stubble; 
He  pursued  them,  passing  on  in  safety, 
55 


ISRAEL'S  TRAINING  AND  DESTINY 

Not  treading  the  path  with  his  feet. 

Who  hath  wrought  and  accomplished  this? 

He  who  called  the  generations  from  the  beginning, 

I,  Jehovah,  who  am  the  first, 

And  with  those  who  come  after  I  am  the  same. 

And  thou,  Israel,  my  servant 

Jacob,  whom  I  have  chosen. 

Offspring  of  Abraham,  my  friend, 

Thou,  whom  I  brought  from  the  ends  of  the  earth, 

And  called  from  its  most  distant  parts; 

To  whom  I  said.  Thou  art  my  servant, 

I  have  chosen  and  have  not  rejected  thee. 

Fear  not,  for  I,  indeed,  am  with  thee, 

Be  not  terrified,  for  I  am  thy  God. 

I  will  strengthen  thee;  yea,  I  will  help  thee; 

Yea,  I  will  uphold  thee  with  my  righteous  hand. 

Behold,  my  servant  whom  I  uphold. 
My  chosen,  in  whom  I  take  delight; 
I  have  put  my  spirit  upon  him. 
That  he  may  set  forth  law  to  the  nations. 

He  will  not  cry  aloud  nor  roar. 

Nor  let  his  voice  be  heard  in  the  street. 

A  crushed  reed  he  will  not  break. 

And  a  dimly  burning  wick  he  will  not  quench. 

Faithfully  will  he  set  forth  law; 

He  will  not  lose  vigor  nor  be  crushed, 

Until  he  establish  law  in  the  earth. 

And  for  his  teaching  the  coastlands  are  waiting. 

Thus  saith  the  one  God,  Jehovah, 

He  who  spread  out  the  heavens  and  stretched  them  forth, 

Who  created  the  earth  and  its  products, 

Who  giveth  breath  to  the  people  upon  it. 

And  spirit  to  those  who  walk  upon  it: 

I,  Jehovah,  have  called  thee  in  righteousness, 

1  have  taken  thee  by  the  hand  a»^  kept  thee, 

56 


ISRAEL'S  TRAINING  AND  DESTINY 

I  have  made  thee  a  pledge  to  the  people,  a  light  to  the 

nations, 
To  open  eyes  that  are  blind. 
To  bring  captives  out  from  confinement, 
From  the  prison  house  dwellers  in  darkness. 

Ye  who  are  deaf  hear,  20_ 

And  ye  blind  look  up  that  ye  may  see,  nllstf 

Who  is  blind  but  my  servants,  Jeho^ 

And  deaf  as  their  rulers?  peJple 

Much  have  ye  seen,  without  observing  it,  ^"*'"^ 
Though  your  ears  were  open,  ye  did  not  hear. 


Jehovah  was  pleased  for  his  righteousness'  sake  21 

To  make  his  teaching  great  and  glorious. 

Yet  it  is  a  people  spoiled  and  plundered, 

They  are  all  snared  in  holes. 

And  hidden  in  prison  houses. 

They  have  become  a  spoil,  with  none  to  rescue, 

An  object  of  plunder,  with  none  to  say.  Restore. 


Conse- 
quences 
of  their 
blind- 
ness 
ni,  22J 


Israel's 
calam- 
ities 
due  to 


ments 

r23-2o\ 


Who  among  you  will  give  ear  to  this,  22 

Will  attend  and  hear  for  time  to  come? 

Who  gave  up  Jacob  to  plunderers. 

And  Israel  to  those  who  spoiled  him,  Jeho- 

And  poured  out  upon  him  the  heat  of  his  anger,  J^dg- 

And  his  violence  like  a  flame. 

So  that  it  scorched  him  round  about,  but  he  knew  it  not, 

And  it  burned  him,  but  he  laid  it  not  to  heart? 

And  now  thus  saith  Jehovah,  23.  By 

He  who  created  thee,  0  Jacob,  and  formed  thee,  ^^h"' 

Fear  not,  0  Israel,  for  I  redeem  thee, 
I  call  thee  by  name,  thou  art  mine.  pro 

When  thou  passeth  through  the  waters,  I  will  be  with  [fy^.^^ 

thee, 
Through  the  rivers,  they  shall  not  overflow  thee; 
When  thou  goest  through  the  fire,  thou  shalt  not  be 

scorched. 
Neither  shall  the  flame  burn  thee. 

57 


Israel 
will  be 


ISRAEL'S  TRAINING  AND  DESTINY 

M.  For  I,  Jehovah,  am  thy  God. 

somed  I,  Israel's  Holy  One,  am  thy  deliverer; 

^*'*^  I  give  Egypt  as  thy  ransom, 

Ethiopia  and  Seba  for  thee. 

Because  thou  art  precious  in  mine  eyes, 

Art  honored  and  I  love  thee, 

I  will  give  lands  in  thy  stead, 

And  peoples  for  the  sake  of  thy  life. 

Fear  not  for  I  am  with  thee, 

From  the  east  I  will  bring  thine  offspring, 

And  from  the  west  I  will  gather  thee; 

I  will  say  to  the  north.  Give  up! 

And  to  the  south.  Withhold  not! 

Bring  my  sons  from  afar. 

And  my  daughters  from  the  ends  of  the  earth, 

Every  one  who  is  called  by  my  name, 

Whom  for  my  glory  I  have  created  and  formed. 

26.  Je^  Ye  are  my  witnesses,  is  Jehovah's  oracle, 

hovah'B  ^jjj  jj^y  servants,  whom  I  have  chosen, 

nlf^m  That  ye  may  acknowledge  and  believe  me. 

And  that  ye  may  perceive  that  I  am  ever  the  same, 

Before  me  no  God  was  formed, 

Nor  shall  there  be  after  me, 

I,  even  I,  am  Jehovah, 

And  beside  me  there  is  no  deliverer. 

It  was  I  who  announced  and  brought  deliverance. 

And  I  declared,  and  there  was  no  strange  god  among  you, 

Ye  are  my  witnesses,  is  Jehovah's  oracle, 

I  am  God,  yea,  from  henceforth  the  same; 

And  there  is  none  who  can  snatch  from  my  hand. 

When  I  work,  who  can  reverse  it? 

Thus  saith  Jehovah, 

Your  redeemer,  Israel's  Holy  One, 

For  your  sake  I  have  sent  to  Babylon, 

of'""  And  have  brought  them  all  down  as  fugitives. 

Baby-  Even  the  Chaldeans  with  their  piercing  cries  of  lamen- 

(."• »)  tation, 

58 


ISRAEL'S  TRAINING  AND  DESTINY 

It  is  I,  Jehovah,  your  Holy  One, 
The  Creator  of  Israel,  your  King. 

But  thou,  0  Jacob,  hast  not  called  upon  me,  29. 

Nor  hast  thou  wearied  thyself  about  me,  0  Israel;  ^lone 

Thou  hast  not  brought  me  the  sheep  of  thy  burnt-  [^Hh- 
offerings,  (»»") 

Nor  honored  me  with  thy  sacrifices. 
With  offerings  I  have  not  burdened  thee, 
Nor  with  incense  wearied  thee. 
Thou  broughtest  me  no  sweet  cane  with  thy  money. 
Nor  with  the  fat  of  thy  sacrifices  sated  me. 
Rather  thou  hast  only  burdened  me  with  thy  sins, 
And  wearied  me  with  thine  iniquities. 


But  it  is  I  alone  who  blot  out  thy  transgressions,  30 

And  I  do  not  remember  thy  sins. 
Remind  me,  let  us  plead  together, 


Israel's 
disas- 
ters the 
result 


Do  thou  set  forth  the  matter  that  thou  mayest  be  of  past 


justified:  ^^ 


Thy  first  father  sinned. 
And  thy  mediators  rebelled  against  me. 
Thy  rulers  profaned  my  sanctuary, 
And  I  gave  up  Jacob  to  the  ban, 
And  Israel  to  revilings! 

But  now  hear,  0  Jacob,  my  servant,  si.Je- 

And. Israel  whom  I  have  chosen;  ^^"^^ 

Thus  saith  Jehovah,  thy  maker,  r«ad.v 

Even  he  who  formed  thee  from  the  womb,  who  helpeth  store 

thee:  ^^^'■"• 

*  Fear  not,  my  servant  Jacob, 
And  thou,  Jeshurun,  whom  I  have  chosen; 
For  I  will  pour  water  upon  the  thirsty  land 
And  streams  upon  the  dry  ground. 

32.  Ea- 

I  will  pour  out  m'y  spirit  upon  thy  children,  §ono? 

And  my  blessing  upon  thy  descendants,  piopie 

So  that  they  shall  spring  up  as  grass  in  the  midst  of  waters,  before 

As  willows  by  water-courses.  (i.^™^° 
59 


ISRAEL'S  TRAINING  AND  DESTINY 

One  shall  say,  "I  am  Jehovah's," 

And  another  shall  call  himself,  "Jacob," 

And  another  will  inscribe  on  his  hand,  "Jehovah's," 

And  receive  the  surname,  "Israel."* 

I.  The  Seventy  Years  Following  the  Rebuilding  of  the  Temple. 

Regarding  the  seventy  years  which  intervened  between  the  rebuilding 
of  the  temple  in  516  B.C.  and  the  appearance  of  Nehemiah  in  445  the 
biblical  historians  are  silent.  This  silence  is  probably  because  there 
were  no  important  political  events  in  the  life  of  the  Judean  community 
to  be  recorded.  During  the  latter  part  of  his  reign  Darius  bridged  the 
Hellespont  and  undertook  the  conquest  of  the  western  world.  Later, 
under  the  reign  of  his  son  Xerxes,  the  mighty  hordes  of  eastern  warriors 
were  turned  back,  and  the  growing  weakness  of  the  great  Persian  Empire 
was  revealed.  In  486  Egypt  rebelled,  and  Persian  armies  marched 
along  the  eastern  shore  of  the  Mediterranean,  probably  levying  heavy 
taxes  for  their  support  upon  the  Jews  as  well  as  upon  the  other  peoples 
of  Palestine.  The  suppression  of  the  rebellion  in  Egypt  illustrated  how 
impossible  it  was  for  any  of  the  eastern  peoples  to  withstand  even  the 
decadent  power  of  the  Persian  Empire. 

In  Palestine  the  Jews  were  still  the  prey  of  their  hostile  neighbors. 
No  walls  protected  the  temple  and  city  of  Jerusalem.  The  Jews  were 
probably  ground  down  under  their  greedy  Persian  governors.  With 
the  disappearance  of  Zerubbabel  the  local  control  fell  naturally  into 
the  hands  of  the  high  priest  and  his  followers,  whose  civil  authority 
from  this  time  on  constantly  increased.  The  words  of  II  Isaiah  well 
describe  rhe  lot  of  the  Jews  of  Palestine  during  this  period: 

It  is  a  people  spoiled  and  plundered. 
They  are  all  snared  in  holes, 
And  hidden  in  prison  houses. 
They  have  become  a  spoil, 
With  none  to  rescue. 
An  object  of  plunder. 
With  none  to  say,  Restore. 

II.  Spiritual  Forces  in  Judaism.  The  political  horizon  furnished 
little  to  inspire  the  disappointed  and  persecuted  Jews.  Their  eyes  were 
still  blinded  by  the  brilliant  hopes  that  had  stirred  them  at  the  time 
when  the  temple  was  rebuilt.    The  quenching  of  these  hopes  bad  left 

60 


SPIRITUAL  FORCES  IN   JUDAISM 

them  in  deeper  darkness  than  before.  There  seemed  no  rift  in  the 
clouds  that  overshadowed  them.  Even  their  priestly  rulers  were  selfish 
and  inconsiderate.  For  the  faithful  few  who  rose  above  the  discour- 
agements and  obstacles  that  confronted  them,  however,  this  period  of 
deepest  gloom  was  lighted  by  a  faith  that  shines  through  and  glorifies 
most  of  the  later  books  of  the  Old  Testament.  From  the  psalms  and 
prophecies  of  the  period  it  is  evident  that  there  were  a  few  who  in  the 
midst  of  these  discouraging  circumstances  found  peace  and  joy.  As 
they  meditated  upon  the  experiences  of  their  race,  and  read  and  pon- 
dered the  writings  of  the  earlier  prophets,  they  began  to  appreciate  not 
only  the  real  significance  of  their  past  history  but  the  meaning  of  the 
present  affliction.  The  chief  spokesman  of  these  immortal  heroes  of 
the  faith  was  the  prophetic  author  of  Isaiah  40-66. 

III.  Evidences  That  Isaiah  40=66  were  Written  in  Palestine. 
Only  recently  have  careful  students  of  Isaiah  40-66  begun  to  realize 
that  the  point  of  view  in  all  of  these  chapters  is  not  distant  Babylon  but 
Jerusalem.  The  repeated  references  in  chapter  56  and  following  to 
conditions  in  Jerusalem  have  led  all  to  recognize  their  Palestinian 
origin.  The  evidence,  however,  regarding  chapters  40-55  is  almost 
equally  convincing.  The  vocabulary  and  literary  figures  employed 
throughout  are  those  peculiar  to  the  agricultural  life  of  Palestine  and 
not  to  the  commercial  civilization  of  Babylon.  The  problems  also  are 
those  of  the  Judean  community.  The  class  to  whom  the  prophet 
addresses  his  messages  is  evidently  the  same  as  that  to  which  Haggai 
and  Zechariah  speak.  Jerusalem,  not  a  Jewish  colony  in  Babylon, 
is  the  constant  object  of  the  prophet's  appeal.  Babylon  is  only  one 
of  the  distant  lands  of  the  dispersion.  It  is  from  Jerusalem  that  the 
prophet  ever  views  the  world.  Thus  in  43^''  he  declares  in  the  name 
of  Jehovah: 

Fear  not,  for  I  am  with  thee. 

From  the  east  I  will  bring  thine  offspring, 

And  from  the  west  I  will  gather  them; 

I  will  say  to  the  north,  Give  up  1 

And  to  the  south.  Withhold  notl 

Bring  my  sons  from  afar. 

And  my  daughters  from  the  ends  of  the  earth. 

Interpreted  in  the  light  of  their  true  geographical  setting,  these  proph- 
ecies gain  at  once  a  new  and  clearer  meaning. 

61 


ISRAEL'S  TRAINING  AND  DESTINY 

IV.  Their  Probable  Date.  The  reference  in  43''-"  to  the  offerings 
brought  by  the  people  to  Jehovah's  temple  clearly  implies  that  it  had 
already  been  built.  Furthermore,  the  charges  preferred  against  the 
Judean  community  are  very  similar  to  those  in  the  book  of  Malachi, 
which  is  generally  assigned  to  the  period  immediately  preceding  the 
arrival  of  Nehemiah  in  445  B.C.  {cf.  §  XCVII).  From  the  parallels  in 
chapter  48  and  elsewhere  it  is  evident  that  Jehovah's  Messiah  in  45*  L° 
not  Cyrus  but  Israel,  the  messianic  nation,  to  which  Jehovah  in  earlier 
days  under  David  and  his  successors  gave  repeated  victories  and  far- 
extended  authority.  The  presence  of  the  name  Cyrus  seems  without 
reasonable  doubt  to  be  due  to  a  later  scribe,  who  thus  incorrectly  iden- 
tified the  allusion.  It  is  supported  neither  by  the  metrical  structure 
nor  the  context  of  the  passages  in  which  it  is  found.  Furthermore,  the 
ideas  in  Isaiah  40-55  are  almost  without  exception  those  which  Zech- 
ariah  had  already  voiced  in  germinal  form,  especially  in  his  latest  proph- 
ecies preserved  in  chapters  7  and  8.  They  are  here  more  fully  and  far 
more  gloriously  expanded,  indicating  that  their  author  lived  perhaps 
a  generation  later  than  Zechariah.  The  years  between  500  and  450 
furnish  the  most  satisfactory  setting  for  these  prophecies.  In  a  very 
true  sense,  however,  like  many  of  the  psalms,  they  are  timeless.  The 
question  of  their  exact  date  is  comparatively  unimportant  except  as 
it  throws  light  upon  their  interpretation. 

V.  Their  Literary  Characteristics.  The  prophecies  in  Isaiah  40- 
66  are  psalms,  sharing  the  characteristics  of  all  IjtIc  Hebrew  poetry. 
Each  is  complete  in  itself  and  yet  closely  related  to  the  others  both  in 
content  and  literary  form.  Their  nobility  of  theme,  their  breadth  of 
outlook,  their  wealth  of  rich  and  glowing  figures,  and  their  finished 
literary  character  give  them  an  incontestable  place  among  the  greatest 
writings  of  the  Old  Testament.  While  there  is  a  powerful  argument 
running  through  them  all,  the  logic  is  not  cumulative  but  rather  moves 
in  a  spiral,  frequently  returning  to  the  same  subject  but  having  a 
gradual  onward  movement.  It  is  the  characteristic  Oriental  method  of 
thinking,  which  is  the  opposite  of  that  of  the  Western  world.  These 
poems  are  grouped  into  three  cycles  which  apparently  represent  the 
prophet's  thinking  during  succeeding  periods.  The  first  cycle  is  in- 
cluded in  40-48.  Chapter  48  is  a  recapitulation  of  the  thought  of 
the  preceding,  and  furnishes  a  natural  conclusion  to  the  first  collec- 
tion. The  second  group  is  in  49-55.  The  note  of  suffering  is  here 
more  prominent,  and  the  portrait  of  the  ideal  type  of  servant  which 
Jehovah  desires  in  order  to  realize  his  purpose  in  human  history  is 

62 


LITEllAKY  CHARACTERISTICS  OF  ISAIAH  40  TO  66 

developed  in  greater  detail  (c/.  §  XCIX).  The  third  group,  in  56-66, 
is  by  many  assigned  to  another  prophet  and  to  a  much  later  period. 
While  the  general  theme  of  the  group  is  different  and  implies  a  some- 
what changed  historical  background,  the  characteristic  ideas  and  liter- 
ary forms  of  40-55  also  recur  here.  From  the  study  of  Israel's  past 
and  future  the  prophet  turns  to  the  closer  consideration  of  the  problems 
in  Palestine.  The  historical  allusions  are  for  the  most  part  in  accord 
with  the  conditions  which  Nehemiah  found  in  Jerusalem  in  445  b.c. 

VI.  Their  Theme  and  Purpose.  The  poems  deal  with  one  theme, 
the  destiny  of  the  chosen  people.  The  prophet  first  reviews  their  past 
history  to  illustrate  Jehovah's  purpose  that  was  being  realized  through 
Israel.  He  notes  the  different  ways  in  which  Jehovah  had  trained  and 
prepared  them  for  their  great  task.  In  the  light  of  the  new  situation 
and  his  enlarged  acquaintance  with  the  world  the  prophet  then  pro- 
ceeds to  define  the  task  that  awaits  his  people.  While  he  does  not 
break  entirely  away  from  the  popular  expectation  that  the  scattered 
exiles  would  yet  be  restored  to  Jerusalem  to  participate  in  the  univer- 
sal kingdom  that  was  there  to  be  established,  he  fully  appreciates  the 
larger  significance  of  Israel's  mission.  He  recognizes  that  it  is  world- 
wide. He  sees  that  the  Jewish  race  is  called  not  merely  to  receive 
honors  and  material  blessings  but  also  to  serve  suffering  and  needy 
mankind.  The  disappointments  and  afflictions  through  which  it  is 
passing  are  but  a  part  of  the  divine  training  for  that  nobler  spiritual 
service.  The  servant  Israel  is  called  to  be  a  witness  to  all  the  nations, 
faithfully  to  set  forth  Jehovah's  teachings  until  his  law  is  established  in 
all  the  earth.  Thus  the  prophet  interprets  Israel's  past,  present,  and 
future  in  its  vital  relation  to  the  universal  life  of  humanity,  and  declares 
that  Israel  is  destined  to  be  a  prophet  nation  and  to  reveal  Jehovah's 
character  to  all  mankind. 

VII.  Reasons  Why  Jehovah  Will  Restore  His  People.  The 
prophet  opens  with  a  declaration  that  Jerusalem's  period  of  forced 
service  b  over,  that  she  has  paid  double  for  the  sins  of  the  past,  and  that 
Jehovah  is  about  to  remove  all  obstacles  and  restore  and  exalt  his  op- 
pressed people.  He  then  gives  the  reasons  for  his  strong  conviction: 
(1)  Jehovah  is  incomparably  superior  to  the  forces  of  nature,  to  the 
nations  that  hold  Israel  in  bondage,  and  to  the  heathen  gods  whose 
images  are  shaped  by  the  hand  of  man.  All  the  powers  of  heaven  and 
earth  are  under  his  control.  He  is  the  creator  and  supreme  ruler  of 
the  universe,  able  to  remove  all  obstacles  and  to  give  strength  and  might 
to  those  who  put  their  trust  in  him.     (2)  Through  his  leadership  of  his 

63 


CONDITIONS  AND  PROBLEMS 

people  in  the  past,  through  their  victories  over  their  powerful  foes,  and 
in  all  the  experiences  of  their  national  life  he  has  shown  his  power 
to  guide  and  deliver.  (3)  Toward  Israel,  his  servant,  he  stands  in  a 
unique  relation,  for  he  has  chosen  and  trained  his  people  for  a  great 
service  in  behalf  of  all  the  world.  Therefore  he  who  is  able  and  eager 
to  deliver  will  not  fail  his  people  in  their  hour  of  need.  (4)  Their 
present  affliction  is  but  a  part  of  that  training  which  is  essential  before 
they  can  perform  their  task  as  Jehovah's  servant;  that  task  is  tenderly 
to  espouse  the  cause  of  those  who  are  crushed,  to  open  eyes  that  are 
blind,  to  bring  captives  out  of  their  confinement,  and,  as  a  faithful 
teacher,  to  inspire  all  mankind  with  love  for  Israel's  God. 

The  prophet's  aim  was  clearly  to  encourage  his  despondent  people, 
to  show  them  the  deeper  meaning  of  their  present  afSictions,  to  open 
their  eyes  to  Jehovah's  gracious  purpose,  to  give  to  the  entire  race  a 
goal  for  which  to  live  and  strive,  and,  above  all,  to  arouse  them  to  effec- 
tive action.  Doubtless  the  prophet  thought  only  of  the  problems  of  the 
men  of  his  day,  but  in  his  interpretation  of  Jehovah's  world-wide  pur- 
pose and  in  the  faith  and  devotion  which  his  words  inspire  he  gave  to 
all  mankind  a  universal,  undying  message. 

§XCVII.     CONDITIONS  AND  PROBLEMS  WITHIN  THE 
JUDEAN  COMMUNITY 

A  son  honoreth  his  father,  and  a  servant  f eareth  his  master ; 

If  then  I  am  a  father,  where  is  mine  honor? 

And  if  I  am  a  master,  where  is  the  one  who  fears  me? 

Saith  Jehovah  to  you,  0  ye  priests,  who  despise  my  name. 

But  ye  say,  'Wherein  have  we  despised  thy  name?' 

Ye  offer  upon  mine  altar  bread  that  is  polluted 

And  ye  say,  'Wherein  have  we  polluted  it?' 

In  that  ye  say,  *  The  table  of  Jehovah  is  contemptible.' 

And  that  when  ye  offer  the  blind  for  sacrifice,  'It  is  no 

harm!' 
And  that  when  ye  offer  the  lame  and  the  sick,  *  It  is  no 

harm  I' 
Present  it  now  to  thy  governor;  will  he  be  pleased  with  it? 
Or  will  he  receive  thee  favorably?  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts. 
And  now  entreat  the  favor  of  God  with  such  an  offering, 

that  he  may  be  gracious  to  us. 
Would  I  receive  any  of  you  favorably?  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts. 

m 


CONDITIONS  AND  PROBLEMS 

0  that  there  were  those  among  you  who  would  shut  the  doors,  2.  Offer 
That  ye  might  not  kindle  fire  on  mine  altar  in  vain!  thfhel- 

1  have  no  pleasure  in  you,  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts,              .  ^^^'^ 
Neither  will  I  accept  an  offering  at  your  hand.                   ^  ^cept- 
For  from  the  rising  of  the  sun  even  to  its  setting  my  name  is  ckid  '° 

sacred  among  the  nations,  ('"•  "' 

And  in  every  place  they  offer  to  my  name  a  pure  offering; 
For  my  name  is  great  among  the  nations,  saith  Jehovah  of 

hosts. 

But  ye  profane  it,  in  that  ye  say,  3.  His 

*  The  table  of  Jehovah  is  polluted,  and  its  food  is  contemp-  p^o"p]e 

tible.'  hfs^'^* 

Ye  say  also,  'Behold  what  a  weariness  is  it!'  and  ye  have  se^ice 

scorned  me;  ^"""^ 

And  ye  have  brought  the  blind,  the  lame  and  the  sick. 
Should  I  accept  this  at  your  hand?  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts. 
But  cursed  be  the  deceiver,  who  has  in  his  flock  a  male, 
And  vows,  and  sacrifices  to  the  Lord  a  blemished  thing ; 
For  I  am  a  great  King,  and  my  name  is  feared  among  the 

nations. 

And  now,  0  ye  priests,  this  command  is  for  you.  4.  Pen- 

If  ye  will  not  hear,  and  if  ye  will  not  lay  it  to  heart,  the^  '^ 

To  give  glory  to  my  name,  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts,  ne'Te^t 

Then  I  will  send  the  curse  upon  you,  and  I  will  curse  your  their 
blessings ;  ^  \^% 

Behold,  I  will  cut  off  your  arm, 
And  will  spread  offal  upon  your  faces,  even  the  offal  of  your 

feasts. 
And  ye  shall  know  that  I  have  sent  this  command  to  you. 
That  my  covenant  with  Levi  may  be  preserved,  saith  Jeho- 
vah of  hosts. 

My  covenant  with  him  was  to  give  life  and  peace ;  5.  The 

And  I  gave  them  to  him  that  he  might  revere  me;  f^f 

And  he  revered  me,  and  stood  in  awe  of  my  name.         fidelity 

_  .  .     '  ...  ,1  of  the 

The  true  mstruction  was  m  his  mouth,  earlier 

And  unrighteousness  was  not  found  in  his  lips;  ^4")**^ 

He  walked  with  me  in  peace  and  uprightness, 

65 


CONDITIONS  AND  PROBLEMS 

And  turned  many  away  from  iniquity. 
For  the  priest's  lips  should  keep  knowledge, 
And  men  should  seek  the  law  at  his  mouth; 
For  he  is  the  messenger  of  Jehovah  of  hosts. 

But  ye  are  turned  aside  out  of  the  way; 

Ye  have  caused  many  to  stumble  in  the  law; 

Ye  have  corrupted  the  covenant  of  Levi, 

Saith  Jehovah  of  hosts. 

Therefore  have  I  also  made  you  contemptible, 

And  base  before  all  the  people, 

According  as  ye  have  not  kept  my  ways. 

And  have  had  no  respect  for  me  in  imparting  the  law. 

Have  we  not  all  one  father? 

Hath  not  one  God  created  us? 

Why  do  we  deal  faithlessly  with  one  another, 

Profaning  the  covenant  of  our  fathers? 

And  this  ye  do  also: 

Ye  cover  the  altar  of  Jehovah  with  tears. 

So  that  he  regardeth  not  the  offering  any  more, 

Neither  receiveth  it  acceptably  from  your  hand. 

Yet  ye  say,  Why? 

Because  Jehovah  hath  been  witness  between  thee  and 
the  wife  of  thy  youth, 

Against  whom  thou  hast  dealt  faithlessly. 

Though  she  is  thy  companion,  and  the  wife  of  thy  cov- 
enant. 

Therefore  give  heed  to  your  spirit. 
And  let  none  deal  faithlessly  with  the  wife  of  his  youth, 
For  I  hate  putting  away, 
Saith  Jehovah,  the  God  of  Israel, 
And  him  who  covers  his  garment  with  violence; 
Therefore  take  heed  to  your  spirit,  that  ye  deal  not 
faithlessly. 

Ye  have  wearied  Jehovah  with  your  words. 
Yet  ye  say,  How  have  we  wearied  him? 
In  that  ye  say,  Everyone  that  doeth  evil 

66 


CONDITIONS  AND  PROBLEMS 

Is  good  in  the  sight  of  Jehovah, 
And  he  delighteth  in  them; 
Or  where  is  the  God  of  justice? 

Behold,  I  am  about  to  send  my  messenger,  lo.  The 

And  he  shall  prepare  the  way  before  me;  luluo- 

And  the  Lord,  whom  ye  seek,  vah  to 

Will  suddenly  come  to  his  temple;  Eis'peo- 

But  who  can  endure  the  day  of  his  coming?  ^3?.«j 

And  who  shall  stand  when  he  appeareth? 

For  he  is  like  a  refiner's  fire, 

And  like  fuUers*  lyes; 

And  he  will  sit  as  a  refiner  and  purifier, 

And  he  will  purify  the  sons  of  Levi, 

And  refine  them  as  gold  and  silver; 

And  they  shall  offer  offerings  in  righteousness. 

Then  shall  the  offerings  of  Judah  and  Jerusalem  be 

pkasant  to  Jehovah, 
As  in  the  days  of  old,  and  as  in  former  yearso 

And  I  will  come  near  to  you  to  judgment;  n. 

And  I  will  be  a  swift  witness  ^hom 

Against  the  sorcerers,  and  against  the  adulterers,  ^^^' 

And  against  those  who  sware  to  that  which  is  false,       wiii 
And  against  those  ^who  oppress  the  hireUng,  the  widow,  demn 
and  the  fatherless,  ^'"^ 

Who  turn  aside  the  resident  alien  from  his  right. 
And  fear  not  me,  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts. 
For  I,  Jehovah,  change  not; 
But  ye  have  not  ceased  to  be  sons  of  Jacob. 

From  the  days  of  thy  fathers  ye  have  turned  aside  from  my  lo.  not 
statutes,  and  ye  have  not  kept  them.  ^^'^|. 

Turn  to  me  and  I  will  turn  to  you,  saith  Jehovah.  yab 

But  ye  say,  'Wherein  shall  we  turn?'  ^ 

Will  a  man  rob  God?    Yet  ye  robbed  me. 

But  ye  say,  'Wherein  have  we  robbed  thee?*    In  tithes  and 
gifts. 

Ye  are  cursed  with  a  curse,  for  ye  rob  me. 

07 


CONDITIONS  AND  PROBLEIVIS 

13.  Ke.    Bring  ye  the  whole  tithe  into  the  store-house, 

ufa't^     That  there  may  be  provision  in  mine  house;   and  test  me 

collie  thereby, 

from      If  I  will  not  open  to  you  the  windows  of  heaven, 
[e'A^ce'  And  pour  you  out  a  blessing,  until  there  is  more  than  enough. 
(""2)      I  will  rebuke  for  your  sakes  the  devourer  that  he  destroy 
not  the  fruit  of  the  ground. 

Neither  shall  the  vine  fail  to  ripen  its  fruit  in  the  field, 

And  all  nations  shall  call  you  happy. 

For  ye  shall  be  a  delightsome  land,  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts. 

14.  The  Your  words  are  hard  upon  me,  saith  Jehovah. 
thesif-  Ye  say,  'What  have  we  said  against  thee?* 
fering     Ye  have  said,  'It  is  useless  to  serve  God, 

vtnts     And  what  gain  is  it  to  us  to  have  kept  his  charge, 
bovah     And  that  we  have  walked  in  funeral  garb  before  him? 
"■")      Even  now  we  call  the  proud  happy. 

Yea,  those  who  work  iniquity  thrive, 

Yea,  they  tempt  God  and  escape.* 

15.  Such  things  those  who  feared  Jehovah  spoke  to  one  another, 
yaUon     And  Jehovah  gave  heed,  and  heard, 

flithfui  ^^^  ^  book  of  remembrance  was  written  before  him, 
(1J.18)      Regarding  those  who  feared  Jehovah, 

And  those  who  keep  in  mind  his  name; 

And  they  shall  be  mine,  saith  Jehovah  of  hosts. 

In  the  day  that  I  make  up  mine  especial  treasure. 

And  I  will  spare  them. 

As  a  man  spares  his  son  who  serves  him. 

Then  shall  ye  return  and  discern  between  the  righteous  and 
the  wicked. 

Between  him  who  serves  God  and  him.  who  serves  him  not. 

16.  The  For  behold  the  day  is  coming  that  shall  burn  like  a  furnace, 
5°y  of  And  all  the  proud  and  those  who  work  iniquity  shall  be 
judg-  stubble, 

and  And  the  day  that  is  coming  shall  bum  them  up,  saith 
^■Jit  Jehovah  of  hosts, 

(*■*)      So  that  there  shall  be  left  them  neither  root  nor  branch. 
But  to  you  who  fear  my  name  there  shall  arise 

68 


CONDITIONS  AND  PROBLEMS 

The  sun  of  righteousness  with  healing  on  his  wings, 
And  ye  shall  go  forth  and  leap  like  calves  out  of  the  stall. 
And  ye  shall  tread  down  the  wicked, 
For  they  shall  be  as  ashes  under  the  soles  of  your  feet. 
In  the  day  in  which  I  begin  to  execute,  saith  Jehovah  of 
hosts. 

My  God,  why  dost  thou  forsake  me,  17. 

Far  from  my  salvation  is  my  groaning  dl^ 

By  day  I  call,  but  thou  answerest  not,  Covih" 

And  by  night  there  is  no  respite  for  me.  answer 

Yet  thou,  0  my  God,  art  the  Holy  One,  vanraa 

Enthroned  on  Israel's  songs  of  praise.  ('ps'''^^ 

In  thee  our  fathers  trusted,  22''») 
They  trusted,  and  thou  didst  deliver  them; 
To  thee  they  cried,  and  were  delivered. 
In  thee  they  trusted  and  were  not  ashamed. 

But  I  am  a  worm  and  no  man,  is  And 

Reproached  by  men  and  despised  by  the  people.  tfm^'^ 

Whoever  sees  me  derideth  me,  from  re- 

They  sneer  as  they  toss  the  head :  ('«%*'^ 
"He  depended  upon  Jehovah,  let  him  deliver  him. 
Let  him  save  him,  since  he  delighteth  in  him!" 

Yet  it  was  thou  who  took  me  from  the  womb,  19.  God 

Who  made  me  safe  on  my  mother's  breast;  f°^^ 

On  thee  was  I  cast  from  birth,  (f.lir' 

Thou  art  my  God  from  my  mother's  womb. 
Be  not  far  from  me,  for  there  is  distress. 
Draw  nigh,  for  there  is  no  helper. 


Many  bulls  encompass  me,  20  Piti 

Mighty  ones  of  Bashan  beset  me  round,  con! 

They  open  their  mouths  at  me,  ^\^'^^ 

Like  a  ravening,  roaring  lion.  *f,T.^°' 

As  water  I  am  poured  out. 
Yea,  all  my  bones  are  out  of  joint. 
My  heart  hath  become  like  wax. 
It  is  melted  within  my  body, 
69 


("■'•) 


CONDITIONS  AND  PROBLEMS 

My  palate  is  dried  up  like  a  potsherd, 

And  my  tongue  cleaveth  to  my  jaws; 

In  the  dust  of  death  thou  dost  lay  me, 

For  dogs  circle  me  about, 

The  assembly  of  evil-doers  enclose  me; 

They  pierce  my  hands  and  my  feet, 

I  can  count  all  my  bones; 

They  stare,  they  gloat  over  me. 

They  divide  my  garments  among  them, 

And  for  my  clothing  they  cast  lots ! 

I.  Date  of  the  Book  of  Malachi.  Malachi  in  the  Hebrew  means 
My  Messenger,  and  the  word  was  apparently  taken  from  the  opening 
verse  of  the  third  chapter.  Like  many  of  the  writings  of  the  post-exilic 
period,  the  book,  therefore,  is  anonymous.  Its  date,  however,  may  be 
determined  from  its  contents.  The  reference  to  the  desolation  of  the 
land  of  the  Edomites  suggests  that  it  was  written  late  in  the  Persian 
period  after  the  Edomites  had  been  driven  out  from  IMount  Seir  by  the 
Nabateans  and  had  found  a  home  on  the  southern  borders  of  Judah. 
The  priests  in  the  Judean  community  had  become  corrupt  and  the 
temple  service  was  neglected,  indicating  that  they  had  lost  the  early 
enthusiasm  which  followed  the  rebuilding  of  the  sanctuary.  The  Ju- 
dean community  was  discouraged  and  a  spirit  of  doubt  and  question- 
ing prevailed  in  the  minds  of  those  who  were  faithfully  striving  to  serve 
Jehovah.  The  prophecy  is  an  exact  picture  of  conditions  as  Nehemiah 
found  them,  so  that  the  book  of  Malachi  may  be  dated  not  far  from 
445  B.C. 

II.  Neglect  of  the  Temple  Service.  The  prophet's  method  is 
akin  to  that  of  Zechariah.  Evidently  the  early  reverence  for  the  word 
of  the  prophet  has  disappeared.  Instead  of  bare  assertions,  each  con- 
clusion is  supported  by  detailed  arguments.  The  author  of  Malachi  is 
also  deeply  interested  in  the  ritual  and  regards  the  preservation  of  its 
purity  as  essential  to  the  religious  life  of  the  Judean  community.  He 
charges  the  priests  with  failure  to  observe  the  ceremonial  laws,  especially 
in  allowing  the  people  to  bring  for  sacrifice  animals  that  are  blind,  lame, 
and  sick.  These  acts  are  evidence  of  the  religious  apathy  that  had 
seized  even  the  religious  leaders  of  the  people.  The  prophet  declares 
boldly  that  under  the  guise  of  religion  the  priests  are  robbing  Jehovah. 
Above  all  they  are  faithless  to  their  responsibilities  as  the  appointed 
teachers  of  the  people.     In  2^''  he  presents  the  clearest  picture  extant 

70 


NEGLECT  OF  THE  TEMPLE  SERVICE 

of  the  task  of  the  priest  as  teacher.  His  duty  was  to  instruct  the  people, 
to  help  them  to  overcome  temptation,  and  to  make  very  clear  to  them 
the  way  of  duty.  This  ideal,  the  prophet  declares,  was  realized  by 
earlier  priests,  but  now  those  who  are  the  appointed  religious  guides 
are  misleading  the  people. 

III.  The  Need  of  a  Great  Moral  Awakening.  The  evils  which 
the  prophet  denounced  were  not  confined  to  the  priests.  The  old 
Semitic  law  regarding  divorce  was  exceedingly  lax.  A  husband  could 
lead  his  wife  to  the  door  of  his  tent  and  tell  her  to  be  gone,  thereby 
severing  their  marriage  relation.  The  Deuteronoraic  law  sought  to  re- 
lieve this  injustice  by  providing  that  the  husband  must  place  in  the 
hand  of  his  wife,  as  she  departs,  a  document  stating  the  grounds  on 
which  he  had  divorced  her.  By  the  middle  of  the  fifth  century  B.C. 
divorce  had  evidently  become  exceedingly  common  in  Palestine.  The 
prophet  denounced  it  on  the  basis  of  its  injustice  and  cruelty.  He  also 
maintained  that  marriage  was  a  solemn  covenant  before  Jehovah  be- 
tween man  and  wife,  and  that  he  who  disregarded  it  dealt  faithlessly 
and  was  the  especial  object  of  divine  displeasure. 

Traces  of  the  old  heathenism  still  remained  in  Judah,  and  the  depend- 
ent, oppressed  classes  received  little  pity  from  the  selfish,  heartless  rulers. 
In  the  face  of  these  evils  the  prophet  declared  that  Jehovah  would 
surely  send  a  messenger  to  punish  and  to  reform  priest  and  people. 
The  prophecy  was  evidently  based  on  a  clear  recognition  that  Jehovah 
was  ever  working  to  trai^  and  uplift  his  people,  and  that  a  period  of 
degeneration  must  surely  be  followed  by  a  period  of  reform.  In  the 
work  of  Xehemiah  the  prophet's  hopes  were  in  part  fulfilled,  but  the 
larger  fulfilment  of  the  underlying  principle  was  realized  in  the  thorough- 
going reformatory  work  of  John  the  Baptist  and  in  that  of  the  Great 
Teacher.  In  a  later  appendix  to  the  prophecy  of  Malachi  this  theme 
is  still  further  developed.  The  promise  is  made  that  another  prophet, 
with  the  zeal  of  the  great  reformer  Elijah,  would  come  and  prepare  the 
way  for  a  new  and  nobler  era. 

IV.  The  Lot  of  the  Faithful.  In  the  prophecy  of  Malachi  is  first 
voiced  the  despairing  cries  and  doubts  of  those  of  the  faithful  who  failed 
to  rise  above  the  effect  of  the  existing  social  and  religious  evils.  They 
are  the  righteous  or  afflicted  who  also  speak  through  certain  of  the 
earlier  psalms  of  the  Psalter  {e.  g.,  10-17,  22).  It  was  a  period  when 
the  man  who  did  right  and  was  faithful  to  the  demands  of  the  law  was 
thereby  condemned  to  poverty  and  persecution  at  the  hands  of  the  cor- 
rupt priests  and  rulers.  Worse  than  that,  their  poverty  and  wretched- 
ness were  interpreted,  according  to  the  current  belief  of  the  day,  as  con- 

7\ 


CONDITIONS  AND  PROBLEMS 

vincing  evidence  of  Jehovah's  displeasure  because  of  their  sins.  It 
was  a  time  when  wickedness  triumphed  and  innocence  suffered,  and 
when  the  question  whether  or  not  a  righteous  God  ruled  the  universe 
rose  persistently  in  the  minds  of  the  faithful.  The  author  of  Malachi 
recognizes  and  seeks  to  meet  these  doubts: 

Ye  have  said,  It  is  useless  to  serve  God, 

And  what  gain  is  it  to  us  to  have  kept  his  charge, 

And  that  we  have  walked  in  funeral  garb^^efore  him? 

Even  now  we  call  the  proud  happy. 

Verily  those  who  work  iniquity  thrive. 

Yea,  they  tempt  God  and  escape. 

Here  the  problem  is  the  same  as  that  of  the  book  of  Job.  To  these 
doubts  the  prophet  could  only  reply  that  Jehovah  will  keep  a  record  of 
the  faithful  and  in  his  good  time  will  reward  them. 

V.  The  Problem  of  Suffering  in  the  Literature  of  the  Period. 
As  was  natural,  this  problem  of  innocent  suffering  was  prominent  in 
the  literature  of  the  period.  It  became  especially  insistent  at  this 
time,  because  it  had  ceased  to  be  the  problem  of  the  community,  and 
had  become  that  of  individuals  or  of  a  class.  While  the  nation  rested 
under  the  shadow  of  misfortune,  a  solution  of  the  problem  was  found 
in  the  consciousness  of  national  guilt  and  in  the  hope  that  the  affliction 
would  be  but  temporary.  The  old  dogma  that  virtue  was  always  re- 
warded and  wickedness  punished  continued  to  satisfy  Israel's  leaders. 
When,  however,  a  considerable  class  in  the  community  were  conscious 
that  they  had  committed  no  crimes  worthy  of  the  bitter  persecutions  and 
calamities  that  overtook  them,  and  that  it  was  often  just  because  of 
their  virtue  and  the  steadfastness  with  which  they  clung  to  the  nobler 
ideals  of  their  race  that  they  were  thus  assailed,  the  current  interpreta- 
tions of  evil  were  no  longer  satisfactory.  When  in  time  many  of  them 
went  down  to  the  grave  crushed  by  affliction  and  the  objects  of  the 
taunts  and  revilings  of  their  wicked  pursuers,  the  insufficiency  of  the 
current  explanation  of  misfortune  was  tragically  demonstrated.  To 
their  minds  Sheol  or  the  grave  offered  no  solution,  for,  as  among  all 
early  Aryan  and  Semitic  peoples,  it  was  thought  of  as  the  dark,  passion- 
less, joyless  abode  of  the  shades. 

In  most  of  the  psalms  of  this  period  the  poets  who  speak  in  behalf  of 
the  afflicted  class,  like  the  author  of  Malachi,  expressed  the  hope  that 
Jehovah  would  speedily  come  to  their  deliverance  and  signally  vindi- 
cate and  reward  them.    The  heroism  and  fidelity  that  they  represent 

72 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  SUFFERING 

can  only  be  fully  appreciated  in  the  light  of  this  discouraging  period 
when  evil  was  regnant.  It  was  apparently  at  this  time  that  the  great 
poet,  who  speaks  through  the  book  of  Job,  presented,  with  the  spirit 
and  method  of  a  modern  philosopher,  the  lot  of  these  innocent  sufferers. 
He  also  proved  for  all  time  that  misfortune  is  not  always  the  evidence 
of  guilt,  and  that  the  current  doctrine  of  proportionate  rewards  and 
the  explanations  that  were  adduced  to  support  it  were  in  certain  cases 
absolutely  untenable. 


§XCVIII.     THE  PROBLEM   AND  TEACHINGS  OF  THE  BOOK 
OF  JOB 

There  was  a  man  in  the  land  of  Uz,  whose  name  was  i.  job's 
Job.     And  that  man  was  blameless  and  upright;  he  feared  prosper. 
God  and  turned  away  from  evil.     And  seven  sons  and  three  '^y  and 
daughters  were  bom  to  him.     His  possessions  also  included  pifrT 
seven  thousand  sheep,  three  thousand  camels,  five  hundred  ffob 
yoke  of  oxen,  five  hundred  she  asses,  and  an  exceedingly  '") 
large  number  of  servants ;  so  that  this  man  was  the  greatest 
of  all  the  peoples  of  Palestine.     And  his  sons  were  accus- 
tomed to  hold  a  feast  in  one  another's  house  each  on  his 
day.     And  they  were  wont  to  send  and  invite  their  three 
sisters  to  eat  and  drink  with  them.     And  when  the  days  of 
their  feasting  were  over.  Job  used  to  send  and  sanctify 
them,  and  he  rose  up  early  in  the  morning,  and  offered 
burnt-offerings  according  to  the  number  of  them  all;    for 
Job  said.  Perhaps  my  sons  have  sinned,  and  renounced 
God  in  their  hearts.     Thus  Job  did  continually. 

Now  on  a  certain  day  when  the  sons  of  God  came  to  2.  The 
present  themselves  before  Jehovah,  Satan  also  came  among  thatTis 
them.     And  Jehovah  said  to  Satan,  Whence  comest  thou? 
Then  Satan  answered  Jehovah,  and  said.  From  going  to  intrr- 
and  fro  in  the  earth,  and  walking  up  and  down  on  it.     And  If-n) 
Jehovah  said  to  Satan,  Hast  thou  considered  my  servant 
Job?  for  there  is  none  like  him  on  the  earth,  a  blameless  and 
upright  man  who  fears  God,  and  turns  away  from  evil. 
Then  Satan  answered  Jehovah,  and  said,  Doth  Job  fear 
God  for  nought?    Hast  thou  not  made  a  hedge  about  him, 
and  about  his  household,  and  about  all  that  he  hath,  on 
every  side?    Thou  hast  blessed  the  work  of  his  hands,  and 
his  possessions  are  increased  in  che  land.     But  put  forth 

73 


piety  IS 
not  dis- 


THE  PROBLEINI  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

thy  hand  now,  and  touch  all  that  he  hath,  and  he  will 
curse  thee  to  thy  face. 

Then  Jehovah  said  to  Satan,  Behold  all  that  he  hath  is  in 
thy  power;  only  put  not  forth  thy  hand  upon  him.  So 
Satan  went  forth  from  the  presence  of  Jehovah. 

Now  on  a  certain  day  when  his  sons  and  daughters  were 
eating  and  drinking  in  their  eldest  brother's  house,  a  mes- 
senger came  to  Job  and  said.  The  oxen  were  plowing  and 
the  asses  were  feeding  beside  them,  when  the  Sabeans 
suddenly  attacked  and  captured  them,  and  they  have  slain 
the  servants  with  the  edge  of  the  sword ;  and  I  alone  have 
escaped  to  tell  you.  While  that  one  was  yet  speaking, 
another  came  and  said.  The  fire  of  God  has  fallen  from 
heaven,  and  has  burned  up  the  sheep  and  the  servants, 
and  consumed  them;  and  I  alone  have  escaped  to  tell 
you.  While  that  one  was  yet  speaking,  another  came  and 
said,  The  Chaldeans  made  three  bands,  and  raided  the 
camels  and  took  them  away,  and  they  have  slain  the  ser- 
vants with  the  edge  of  the  sword;  I  alone  have  escaped  to 
tell  you.  While  that  one  was  yet  speaking,  another  came 
and  said.  Your  sons  and  your  daughters  were  eating  and 
drinking  in  their  eldest  brother's  house,  when  there  came  a 
great  wind  from  over  the  wilderness,  and  smote  the  four 
comers  of  the  house,  and  it  fell  upon  the  young  men,  and 
they  are  dead.     I  alone  have  escaped  to  tell  you. 

Then  Job  arose,  and  tore  his  robe,  and  shaved  his  head, 
and  fell  upon  the  ground  and  worshipped ;  and  he  said : 

Naked  I  came  from  my  mother's  womb, 
And  naked  shall  I  return  thither! 
Jehovah  gave  and  he  hath  taken  away; 
Blessed  be  the  name  of  Jehovah ! 

In  all  this  Job  sirmed  not,  nor  reviled  God. 

And  on  a  certain  day  when  the  sons  of  God  came  to  pre- 
sent themselves  before  Jehovah,  Satan  came  also  to  pre- 
sent himself  before  Jehovah.  And  Jehovah  said  to  Satan, 
Whence  comest  thou?  And  Satan  answered  Jehovah,  and 
said.  From  going  to  and  fro  in  the  earth,  and  from  walking 
up  and  down  on  it.  And  Jehovah  said  to  Satan,  Hast  thou 
considered  my  servant  Job?  for  there  is  none  like  him  in 

74 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

the  earth,  a  blameless  and  upright  man,  one  who  fears 
God,  and  turns  away  from  evil ;  and  he  stUl  remains  stead- 
fast in  his  piety,  although  thou  incitest  me  against  him,  to 
destroy  him  without  cause.  And  Satan  answered  Jehovah, 
and  said.  Skin  for  skin,  yea,  all  that  a  man  hath  will  he 
give  for  his  life.  But  put  forth  thy  hand  now,  and  touch 
his  bone  and  his  flesh ;  surely  he  will  curse  thee  to  thy  face. 
And  Jehovah  said  to  Satan,  Behold,  he  is  in  thy  power: 
only  spare  his  life. 

So  Satan  went  forth  from  the  presence  of  Jehovah,  and  7  Af 
smote  Job  with  a  malignant  eruption  from  the  sole  of  his  ^■a^'^ 
foot  to  his  crown.     And  he  took  a  potsherd  with  which  to  J^^''^^^^ 
scrape  himself ;   and  he  sat  among  the  ashes.  ('• ») 

Then  said  his  wife  to  him,  Do  you  still  remain  steadfast  8. 
in  your  piety?    Curse  God,  and  die.     But  he  said  to  her,  Jcf  by*^' 
You  speak  like  one  of  the  foolish  women.     We  receive  ^IfZ'^^ 
good  at  the  hand  of  God,  shall  we  not  also  receive  evil? 
In  all  this  did  not  Job  sin  with  his  lips. 

Now  when  Job's  three  friends  heard  of  all  this  evil  that  ?.  vis- 
was  come  upon  him,  they  came  each  from  his  own  place :  his'^ ''' 
EUphaz  the  Temanite,  and  Bildad  the  Shuhite,  and  Zophar  Jfjfi^^^" 
the  Naamathite;    and  they  made  an  appointment  together 
to  come  to  show  their  sympathy  for  him  and  to  comfort 
him.     And  when  they  lifted  up  their  eyes  afar  off  and  knew 
him  not,  they  raised  their  voice  and  wept;    and  all  tore 
their  robes,  and  sprinkled  dust  upon  their  heads  toward 
heaven.     So  they  sat  down  with  him  on  the  ground  seven 
days  and  seven  nights,  without  any  one  speaking  a  word  to 
him,  for  they  saw  that  his  pain  was  very  great. 

Then  Job  began  to  speak  and  said :  lo.  His 

Why  did  I  not  die  before  birth?  fe^^e 

Why  did  I  not  expire  when  my  mother  bore  me?  nlt'ai- 

For  now  would  I  have  lain  down  and  been  quiet,  ro°wed 

I  would  have  slept,  then  had  I  been  at  rest, 
With  kings  and  counsellors  of  the  earth, 
Who  built  up  ruins  for  themselves; 
Or  with  princes  who  possessed  gold, 
Who  filled  their  houses  with  silver. 
There  the  wicked  cease  from  raging, 
75 


to  die 
(32.  ". 

IJ-IS, 
17 -H) 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

And  the  weary  are  at  rest. 

There  the  prisoners  have  peace  as  well, 

They  hear  not  the  voice  of  the  taskmaster. 

The  small  and  the  great  are  there, 

And  the  servant  is  free  from  his  master. 

n.  In-  "Why  is  light  given  to  the  suffering, 

Kis'  A^^  ^^^®  *°  those  in  anguish, 

being  Who  long  for  death  but  it  comes  not, 

peikd  And  search  for  it  more  than  treasures, 

(?o.'iy®  Who  rejoice  with  great  exultation, 

''•")  And  are  glad  when  they  can  find  the  grave? 

For  the  thing  which  I  feared  has  come  upon  me, 

And  that  of  which  I  was  afraid  has  overtaken  me. 

No  peace  nor  quiet,  have  I, 

No  rest,  but  trembling  seizes  me. 

10  Then  answered  Eliphaz  the  Temanite,  and  said: 

Ell- 
phaz: 


fortune 
the  in 


conse 


If  one  tries  to  speak  with  you,  will  you  be  im- 


Mis- '  patient. 


But  who  can  restrain  himself  from  speaking? 


evitabie  Behold,  you  have  instructed  many. 


quence  And  have  strengthened  feeble  hands. 

^  he '  Your  words  have  upheld  him  who  was  falling, 

^en^g  And  you  have  made  tottering  knees  strong. 

(4»°-o  But  now,  that  it  is  come  to  you,  you  are  impa- 

tient. 

It  touches  yourself  and  you  lose  courage. 

Is  not  your  piety,  your  trust. 

Your  hope  the  integrity  of  your  ways? 

Remember  now  who,  being  innocent,  perished? 

Or  where  have  the  upright  been  destroyed? 

13.  No  Can  mortal  man  be  righteous  before  God? 

Sn'^'bi  Can  a  man  be  pure  before  his  maker? 

wholly  Behold,  he  trusteth  not  in  his  own  servants, 

(17-1.)  And  his  angels  he  chargeth  with  error; 

How  much  more  the  dwellers  in  clay  houses, 
Whose  foundation  is  laid  in  the  dust? 
76 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

Happy  is  the  man  whom  God  correcteth,  14. 

Therefore  reject  not  the  chastening  of  the  Ahnighty.       f" *""'* 
For  he  causeth  pain  and  bindeth  up;  God's 

He  woundeth  and  his  hands  heal.  cipiine 

He  will  deliver  you  out  of  six  troubles,  wlu^'"* 

Yea,  in  seven,  no  evil  shall  touch  you,  ?5?r^&J' 

In  famine  he  will  redeem  you  from  death,  «>• ") 

And  in  war  from  the  power  of  the  sword. 
You  shall  be  hid  from  the  scourge  of  the  tongue; 
You  shall   not   be   afraid  of   destruction   when   it 

comes. 
At  destruction  and  want  you  shall  laugh, 
And  you  need  not  fear  the  beasts  of  the  earth. 
You  shall  come  to  your  grave  in  a  ripe  old  age, 
As  a  sheaf  garnered  in  its  season. 
Lo  this,  we  have  searched  out,  so  it  is; 
Hear  it  and  know  it  yourself. 

Then  Job  answered  and  said:  is. Job: 
Oh,  that  my  bitterness  were  weighed,  u^^^' 
All  my  calamity  laid  in  the  scales!  char- 
Then  would  it  be  heavier  than  the  sand  of  the  seas ;  of  Ws 
For  this  reason  my  words  are  rash.  f^^"" 
For  the  arrows  of  the  Almighty  are  within  me,  (6'-*'') 
Their  poison  my  spirit  drinks  up. 

Oh  that  I  might  have  my  request,  le.sigh 

And  that  God  would  grant  that  for  which  I  long:  driver- 

Even  that  it  would  please  God  to  crush  me,  *8"f® 

And  that  he  would  let  loose  his  hand  and  cut  me  off  I 
Then  this  would  be  my  consolation, 
I  would  exult  in  pain  that  spares  not. 

"What  strength  have  I  still  to  endure?  17.  Pa- 

And  what  is  mine  end  that  I  should  be  patient?  Im^t 

Is  my  strength  the  strength  of  stones?  f^^^ 

Or  is  my  body  made  of  brass? 
Behold  there  is  no  help  in  me. 
And  wisdom  is  driven  quite  from  me. 
77 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

18.  Kindness  from  his  friend  is  due  to  one  in  despair, 

i^ssIIIm  Even  though  he  forsakes  the  fear  of  the  Almighty, 

"f. ''^^g  My  brothers  have  been  as  deceptive  as  a  brook, 

("!'?i.  As  the  channel  of  brooks  that  disappear. 

'""''^  For  now  you  are  nothing, 

You  see  a  terror  and  are  afraid. 

Did  I  say,  'Give  to  me?' 

Or,  'Offer  a  present  to  me  of  your  wealth?* 

Or,  'Deliver  me  from  a  foeman's  hand?' 

Or,  'Redeem  me  from  the  oppressor's  power?* 

Teach  me  and  I  will  hold  my  peace. 

And  make  plain  to  me  wherein  I  have  erred. 

How  agreeable  are  upright  words ! 

But  what  does  a  reproof  from  you  reprove? 

Do  you  think  to  reprove  mere  words, 

When  the  speeches  of  the  desperate  are  as  wind? 

You  fall  upon  a  blameless  man, 

And  you  make  merchandise  of  your  friend. 

Now  therefore  be  pleased  to  look  upon  me; 

For  surely  I  will  not  lie  to  you. 

Turn  ere  you  let  injustice  be  done. 

Yea,  turn  again,  my  cause  is  righteous. 

Is  there  injustice  on  my  tongue? 

Can  not  my  taste  discern  what  is  evil? 

Has  not  man  a  hard  service  on  earth? 
And  are  not  his  days  like  the  days  of  a  hireling? 
As  a  slave  who  sighs  for  the  shadows  of  the  even- 
ing, 
And  as  a  hireling  who  looks  for  his  wages. 
So  am  I  given  months  of  misery. 
And  wearisome  nights  are  appointed  me. 
When  I  lie  down,  I  say: 
*When  shall  I  arise,  and  the  night  be  gone?* 
And  I  am  full  of  unrest  until  the  dawn. 
My  flesh  is  clothed  with  worms  and  clods  of  dust; 
My  skin  hardens,  then  breaks  out  again. 
My  days  are  swifter  than  a  weaver's  shuttle. 
And  are  spent  without  hope. 
78 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 
As  the  cloud  is  consumed  and  vanishes  away,  21.  No 

-      ■  -  -  _-         -  return 

from 
Sheol 


So  he  who  goes  down  to  Sheol  shall  come  up  no  more, 
He  shall  return  no  more  to  his  house, 
Nor  shall  his  place  know  him  any  more. 


Therefore  I  will  not  refrain  my  mouth ;  22.  God 

I  will  speak  in  the  bitterness  of  my  spirit.  fessi'y 

Am  I  a  sea,  or  a  sea-monster,  p^P^- 

That  thou  shouldest  set  a  watch  over  me?  man 

When  I  say,  "My  bed  shall  comfort  me,  ^"'"^ 

My  couch  shall  ease  my  complaint;" 

Then  thou  frightest  me  with  dreams, 

And  terrifiest  me  through  visions: 

So  that  I  myself  choose  strangling, 

And  death  rather  than  my  pains. 

I  loath  life,  I  would  not  live  always. 

Let  me  alone,  for  my  days  are  as  a  breath, 

What  is  man,  that  thou  exaltest  him. 

That  on  him  thou  directest  thy  thought. 

That  thou  visitest  him  each  morning. 

And  testest  him  each  moment? 

If  I  have  sinned,  what  have  I  done  to  thee,  0  watcher  23.  if 

of  men?  haT 

Why  hast  thou  set  me  as  thy  target? 


a  man 


sinned, 
why 


And  why  am  I  a  burden  to  thee?  does 

And  why  dost  thou  not  pardon  my  transgression  and  pardon* 

take  away  mine  iniquity?  ^"'  "^ 

For  now  I  shall  lie  down  in  the  dust. 
When  thou  shalt  seek  me,  I  shall  not  be. 


Then  answered  Bildad  the  Shuhite  and  said,  24. 


Bildad: 


How  long  will  you  speak  these  things?  God 

And  the  words  of  your  mouth  be  like  a  mighty  wind?  be"u°,* 

Doth  God  pervert  justice?  iust^ 
Or  doth  the  Almighty  pervert  righteousness? 


(8'-») 


25.  Re- 
pent- 
ance 


If  your  children  sinned  against  him, 

And  he  delivered  them  to  the  consequences  of  their  j^^'J^^ 

guilt ;  deliver 

You  should  earnestly  seek  God,  ("«7 

79 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

And  make  your  supplication  to  the  Almighty. 

If  you  are  pure  and  upright, 

Then  he  will  prosper  your  righteous  habitation. 

26. Job:       Then  Job  answered  and  said: 

sibieTor  Verily  I  know  that  it  is  so, 

mail  to  But  how  can  a  man  be  made  just  with  God? 

EiT^n-  If  he  be  pleased  to  contend  with  him, 

before*  He  cannot  answer  him  one  of  a  thousand. 

^j°[*.  He  is  wise  in  mind  and  mighty  in  strength; 

Who  has  defied  him,  and  remained  unharmed? 

He  who  removeth  mountains  and  they  know  it  not, 

And  overturneth  them  in  his  anger. 

Who  shaketh  the  earth  out  of  its  place, 

So  that  its  pillars  tremble. 

Who  commandeth  the  sun  and  it  rises  not, 

And  on  the  stars  placeth  his  seal. 

If  I  called  and  he  answered  me, 

I  would  not  believe  that  he  had  heard  my  voice. 

He  who  crusheth  me  with  a  tempest. 

And  multiplieth  my  wounds  without  cause. 

He  will  not  permit  me  to  take  my  breath, 

But  fiUeth  me  with  bitterness. 

If  we  speak  of  the  strength  of  the  mighty,  lo  it  is  he ! 

And  if  of  justice.  Who  will  summon  him? 

Though  I  am  righteous,  my  own  mouth  condemns  me, 

Though  I  am  perfect,  it  would  prove  me  to  be  perverse. 

The  earth  is  given  into  the  hand  of  the  wicked; 

He  covereth  the  faces  of  its  judges; 

If  not  he,  then  who  is  it? 

If  I  wash  myself  with  snow. 

And  cleanse  my  hands  with  lye, 

Yet  wilt  thou  plunge  me  into  the  filth. 

And  mine  own  friends  will  abhor  me. 

For  he  is  not  a  man  as  I  am,  that  I  should  answer 

him. 
That  we  should  come  together  in  judgment. 
There  is  no  arbiter  betwixt  us. 
To  lay  his  hand  upon  us  both. 
80 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

Let  him  take  his  rod  away  from  me, 
And  let  not  his  terror  make  me  afraid, 
Then  would  I  speak  and  not  fear  him. 
For  in  myself  I  am  not  thus  fearful. 

Remember  that  as  clay  thou  hast  fashioned  me,  29. 

And  wilt  thou  again  turn  me  into  dust?  oJ/, 

Hast  thou  not  poured  me  out  as  milk?  care  for 

And  curdled  me  like  a  cheese?  b{ft"to 

Thou  hast  clothed  me  with  a  skin  and  with  flesh,  hfrn"^"^ 

And  knit  me  together  with  bones  and  with  sinews.  (lO'-'s) 

Thou  hast  granted  me  life  ami  favor, 

And  thy  care  hath  preserved  my  breath. 

Yet  these  things  thou  didst  hide  in  thy  heart; 

I  know  that  this  is  thy  plan: 

If  I  sin,  then  thou  watchest  me. 

And  if  I  be  just,  yet  I  cannot  lift  up  my  head  I 

Are  not  the  days  of  my  life  few  enough?  30.  Cry 

Let  me  alone,  that  I  may  have  a  little  cheer,  i^t 

Before  I  go  whence  I  shall  not  return,  poTary 

To  the  land  of  darkness  and  of  gloom,  relief 

The  land  dark  as  blackness,  dl^th 
Gloom  without  a  gleam  or  ray  of  light. 


/20-M) 


Then  answered  Zophar,  the  Naamathite,  and  said:  31. 

Shall  the  multitude  of  words  be  unanswered?  m^^  "' 

Can  you  find  the  depths  of  God?  •=^""°* 

t     1           ».         «,      »<•!'»  corn- 
Can  you  reach  the  perfection  of  the  Almighty?  pe- 
lt is  high  as  heaven;  what  canst  thou  do?  God 
Deeper  than  Sheol;  what  can  you  know?  (ii''-') 
Its  measure  is  longer  than  the  earth, 
And  broader  than  the  sea. 

If  you  set  your  heart  aright,  lepent- 

And  stretch  out  your  hands  toward  him;  ^^^ 

If  iniquity  be  in  thy  hand,  put  it  far  away,  again 

And  let  not  unrighteousness  dwell  in  your  tent.  p"a°ce 

Then  you  shall  lift  up  your  face  without  spot;  g"^^^ 

And  you  shall  be  steadfast,  and  have  no  fear.  ("■") 
81 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

Then  Job  answered  and  said: 
No  doubt  but  you  are  the  people, 
And  wisdom  shall  die  with  you! 
But  I  have  a  mind  as  well  as  you, 
And  who  does  not  know  these  things? 

Will  you  speak  what  is  wrong  for  God? 

And  will  you  talk  deceitfully  for  him? 

Will  you  show  favor  to  him? 

Will  you  contend  for  God? 

Would  it  be  well,  should  he  search  you  out? 

Or  as  one  deceives  a  man,  will  you  deceive  him? 

He  will  surely  reprove  you, 

If  secretly  you  show  favor. 

Shall  not  his  majesty  overawe  you. 

And  dread  of  him  fall  upon  you? 

Your  memorable  sayings  are  proverbs  of  ashes. 

Your  defences  are  defences  of  clay! 

Hold  your  peace  that  I  may  speak, 

And  let  come  to  me  what  will. 

I  take  my  flesh  in  my  teeth, 

And  put  my  life  in  my  hand. 

Behold  he  will  slay  me;  I  have  no  hope. 

But  I  will  defend  my  ways  before  him. 

No  godless  man  would  come  before  him. 

Give  careful  heed  to  my  speech, 

And  let  my  declaration  be  in  your  ears. 

Behold  now,  I  have  prepared  my  case, 

I  know  that  I  shall  be  justified. 

36.  Ap-  Withdraw  thy  hand  far  from  me; 

Go^d  for  And  let  not  thy  terror  make  me  afraid. 

Then  call  and  I  will  answer, 

Or  let  me  speak,  and  answer  thou  me. 

How  many  are  my  iniquities  and  sins? 

Make  me  know  my  transgression  and  my  sin. 

Why  dost  thou  hide  thy  face, 

And  regard  me  as  thine  enemy? 

Wilt  thou  harass  a  wind  blown  leaf? 

And  wilt  thou  pursue  the  dry  stubble? 
82 


justice 

^21 -26) 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

For  there  is  hope  of  a  tree,  37, 

If  it  will  be  cut  down,  that  it  will  sprout  again,  hM*no 

And  that  its  shoot  will  not  cease.  be^nd 

Though  its  root  grow  old  in  the  earth,  this  ufe 

And  its  stock  die  in  the  ground;  (i4'-'») 

By  the  scent  of  water  it  will  bud, 
And  put  forth  its  branches  like  a  plant. 
But  man  dies  and  is  laid  low: 
Yea,  a  man  expires,  and  where  is  he? 


Would 
that 


cate  hia 
ser- 
vants 
after 


Oh,  that  thou  wouldst  hide  me  in  Sheol,  38. 

That  thou  wouldst  keep  me  in  secret,  until  thy  wrath 

That  thou  wouldst  appomt  over  me  a  tune,  and  remem-  vindi- 

berme! 
If  a  man  might  die,  shall  he  live  again! 
AU  the  days  of  my  hard  service  would  I  wait,  death 

Until  my  release  should  come.  n/il) 

Thou  wouldst  call  and  I  myself  would  answer  thee ; 
Thou  wouldst  long  for  the  work  of  thy  hands. 
But  the  mountain  surely  falls, 
And  the  rock  moves  from  its  place. 
The  water  wears  away  the  stones, 
Its  floods  wash  away  the  dust  of  the  earth. 

Then  answered  Eliphaz  the  Temanite  and  said:  39. 

Verily,  you  do  away  with  the  fear  of  God,  fK" 

And  hinder  devotion  before  God.  ^o";^ 

For  your  wickedness  inspires  your  speech,  claim 

And  you  choose  the  tongue  of  the  crafty.  gjfiit 

Your  own  mouth  condemns  you,  and  not  I;  <'S'«) 
And  your  own  lips  testify  against  you. 

Then  answered  Job  and  said:  40.^ 

I  have  heard  many  such  things;  ^t^rt 

Troublesome  comforters  are  you  all.  ii}.f^ 

Is  there  no  end  to  vain  words? 
If  you  were  only  in  my  place, 
I  could  join  words  together  against  you  I 

83 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

41.  H«  God  delivereth  me  to  the  ungodly, 

object  And  casteth  me  into  the  hands  of  the  wicked. 

divine  ^  ^^^  ^*  ease,  and  he  shattered  me, 

perse-  He  scized  me  by  the  neck  and  dashed  me  to  pieces, 

(u-iuj  He  hath  also  set  me  up  as  his  target. 

His  arrows  encompass  me  round  about. 

42.  But  0  earth,  cover  not  my  blood, 

wnf  yet  And  let  my  cry  have  no  resting  place. 

vindi-  Even  now  behold  my  witness  is  in  the  heaven, 

him  And  he  who  voucheth  for  me  is  on  high. 

^"■"^  He  will  be  found  to  be  my  friend. 

To  God  my  eye  pours  out  its  tears. 
And  he  will  maintain  the  right  of  a  man  with  God, 
And  between  a  man  and  his  neighbor! 

43.  Then  answered  Bildad  the  Shuhite,  and  said: 
f i'f*^=  The  light  of  the  wicked  is  put  out, 

w  ckid  "^^^      ®  flame  of  his  fire  does  not  shine, 

(18'.'-')  The  light  is  darkened  in  his  tent. 

And  his  light  above  him  is  put  out. 
The  steps  of  his  strength  are  shortened, 
And  his  own  counsel  shall  cast  him  down. 

Then  Job  answered  and  said: 
My  brothers  keep  far  from  me. 
And  my  acquaintances  are  like  strangers  to  me. 
My  kinsmen  have  ceased  to  know  me. 
Even  the  guests  in  my  house  have  forgotten  me. 
My  maids  regard  me  as  a  stranger, 
I  am  an  alien  in  their  sight. 

45.  Oh,  that  my  words  were  now  written! 

^o^  Oh,  that  they  were  inscribed  in  a  book! 

that  That  with  an  iron  pen  and  lead 

IftTr  They  were  engraved  in  a  rock  forever! 

hT^ii  But  I  indeed  know  that  my  Vindicator  liveth, 

dfclted  ^^^  ^*  ^^^*  ^®  ^^^^  stand  upon  the  earth: 

by  *God  And  after  this,  my  skin,  is  destroyed, 

^"■">  Then  I  shaU  behold  God, 

84 


Facts 
contra- 
dict the 
popular 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

Whom  I  myself  shall  see  on  my  side, 
Mine  eyes  shall  behold,  and  not  a  stranger. 

Then  answered  Zophar  the  Naamathite,  and  said:  46. 

Not  so  do  my  thoughts  give  answer  to  me,  Pro^*' 

Because  of  this  my  haste  is  mine!  oVihl 

I  have  heard  the  reproof  which  puts  me  to  shame;         wicked 
But  with  wind  void  of  understanding  you  answer  me.     (20'"f 
Have  you  not  known  this  from  of  old. 
Since  man  was  placed  upon  the  earth. 
That  the  exulting  of  the  wicked  is  short. 
And  the  joy  of  the  godless  but  for  a  moment? 

Then  answered  Job  and  said:  47. job: 

Why  do  the  wicked  live. 
Grow  old,  and  attain  great  power? 

Their  descendants  are  established  in  their  sight,  3o^'a 

And  their  offspring  before  their  eyes.  (2i'.'-«) 

Their  households  are  secure  from  terror, 
And  the  rod  of  God  is  not  upon  them. 

Then  Eliphaz  the  Temanite  answered,  and  said,  48.  eh 

Is  a  man  of  any  account  to  God?  silTthG 

Surely  a  wise  man  is  of  account  to  himself.  o"'y 

Is  it  any  pleasure  to  the  Almighty  that  you  are  righteous? 
Or  is  it  gain  to  him  that  you  are  upright? 
Is  it  because  of  your  fear  of  him  that  he  reproveth  you, 
That  he  entereth  into  judgment  with  you? 
Is  not  your  wickedness  great? 
And  there  is  no  end  to  your  iniquities. 

If  you  return  to  the  Almighty  and  humble  yourself,        49. 
If  you  remove  unrighteousness  far  from  your  tents.        an^e"** 
You  shall  make  your  prayer  to  him,  and  he  will  hear  J^'J,J®' 

you,  deliver- 

And  you  shall  pay  your  vows.  ISSuu) 

You  shall  also  decree  a  thing,  and  it  shall  be  established 

for  you. 
And  light  shall  shine  upon  your  ways. 
85 


nation 
of  Job's 
afflic- 
tion 
(22'-«) 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

60.  Job:       Then  Job  answered  and  said, 

cluVd'^  Even  now  my  complaint  is  bitter, 

only  be  My  stroke  is  heavier  than  my  groaning. 

\^ndi-'  Oh,  that  I  knew  where  I  might  find  him! 

i^^^s°  That  I  might  come  even  to  his  throne! 

''jifl  I  would  set  forth  my  cause  before  him, 

^  And  fill  my  mouth  with  arguments. 

I   would   know   the   words   which  he  would   answer 
me, 

And  understand  what  he  would  say  to  me. 

Would  he  contend  with  me  in  the  greatness  of  his 
power? 

Verily  he  would  give  heed  to  me. 

51.  Then  answered  Bildad  the  Shuhite,  and  said, 

Nomfn  Dominion  and  terror  are  with  him; 

?*nj_^«  He  maketh  peace  in  his  high  places, 

with  Is  there  any  number  to  his  armies? 

^*j^^)  And  upon  whom  does  not  his  light  arise? 

How  then  can  man  be  just  with  God? 

Or  how  can  he  be  clean  who  is  born  of  woman? 

52.job:       Then  Job  answered  and  said, 

teUoT  As  God  liveth,  who  hath  taken  away  my  right, 

ofinno-  ^nd  the  Almighty,  who  hath  made  my  life  bitter, 

CGDC6  O         ■/  /  ■/  * 

even  Surely  my  lips  do  not  speak  unrighteousness, 

though  jj^j.  jjQgg  jjjy  tongue  utter  falsehood, 

^g^  Far  be  it  from  me  that  I  should  grant  that  you  are 

away  right  ] 

right  Until  I  die  I  will  not  give  up  my  innocence. 

f26', 
272.  1.  6) 

53.  Zo-       [Then  Zophar  answered  and  said]: 

^^^J-  Let  mine  enemy  be  as  the  wicked, 

wicked  And  let  him  who  rises  up  against  me  be  as  the  un- 

haveno  _:„U4.»- 

hope  righteous. 

<'"*>  For  what  is  the  hope  of  the  godless, 

When  God  requireth  his  life? 

Will  God  hear  his  cry. 

When  trouble  comes  upon  him? 
86 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

And  Job  again  took  up  his  parable  and  said,  54.  Job: 

Oh,  that  I  were  as  in  the  months  of  old,  5^hil^ 

As  in  the  days  when  God  watched  over  me,  former 

When  his  lamp  shined  upon  my  head,  p^hV 

And  by  his  light  I  walked  through  darkness;  ^"^'''^ 

As  I  was  in  the  prime  of  my  life. 
When  God  put  a  covering  over  my  tent. 
When  the  Almighty  was  yet  with  me. 
And  my  children  were  about  me. 

But  now  my  soul  is  poured  out  within  me;  55. 

Days  of  affliction  have  taken  hold  of  me.  w°^ked 

The  night  bores  through  my  bones,  w»th 

And  my  gnawing  pains  rest  not.  and 

By  reason  of  great  wasting  my  garment  is  crumpled  ?utld 

together;  1-3^  God 

It  binds  me  about  as  the  collar  of  my  coat. 
He  hath  cast  me  into  the  mire, 
And  I  am  become  like  dust  and  ashes. 
I  cry  to  thee  but  thou  dost  not  answer  me. 
I  stand  up,  but  thou  dost  not  regard  me. 
Thou  art  turned  to  be  cruel  to  me; 
With  the  might  of  thy  hand  thou  persecutest  me. 

K  I  have  walked  with  falsehood,  56.  in- 

And  my  foot  has  hasted  to  deceit;  fn""^"' 

Let  me  be  weighed  in  a  just  balance,  ind"^^* 

That  God  may  know  my  integrity.  deed  of 

If  my  step  has  turned  out  of  the  way,  fui^^^' 

And  my  heart  followed  my  inclination,  f^- 

And  if  any  spot  besmirches  my  hands;  (3P-8) 
Then  let  me  sow,  and  let  another  eat. 
And  let  the  produce  of  my  field  be  uprooted. 

Oh,  that  there  was  someone  to  hear  me !  5!:...?'^ 

See,  here  is  my  signature,  let  the  Almighty  answer  me! 
And  the  indictment  which  my  adversary  has  written! 
Surely  I  would  carry  it  on  my  shoulder;  dT^ne 

I  would  bind  it  to  me  as  a  crown;  wuh^* 

I  would  declare  to  him  the  number  of  my  steps,  ^jf^^^ 

As  a  prince  would  I  draw  near  to  him.  c-*^ 

87 


desire 
to  con- 
front 
the 


nocence 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

Then  Jehovah  answered  Job  out  of  the  storm,  and 

said, 
Who  is  this  that  darkeneth  counsel 
By  words  that  lack  knowledge? 
Gird  up  thy  loins  now  like  a  man, 
And  let  me  ask  of  thee  and  inform  thou  me. 
Where  wast   thou  when  I  laid  the  foundations  of 

the  earth? 
Declare,  if  thou  hast  understanding. 
Who  determined  its  measures  that  thou  knowest? 
Or  who  stretched  out  the  line  upon  it? 
On  what  were  its  foundations  fastened? 
Or  who  laid  its  corner-stone. 
When  the  morning  stars  sang  together, 
And  all  the  sons  of  God  shouted  for  joy? 

Or  who  shut  up  the  sea  with  doors. 

When  it  broke  forth,  and  issued  out  of  the  womb ; 

When  I  made  clouds  its  garments. 

And  thick  mists  its  swaddling-bands, 

And  marked  out  for  it  my  bound. 

And  set  bars  and  doors. 

And  said.  Here  shalt  thou  come,  but  no  further; 

And  here  shall  thy  proud  waves  stop? 

Canst  thou  hunt  the  prey  for  the  lioness, 
Or  satisfy  the  appetite  of  the  young  lions, 
When  they  couch  in  their  dens. 
And  abide  in  the  covert  to  lie  in  wait? 
Who  provideth  at  evening  his  prey, 
When  his  young  ones  cry  to  God, 
And  wander  to  seek  for  food? 

Will  the  fault-finder  contend  with  the  Almighty? 
He  who  argueth  with  God,  let  him  answer  it. 
Wilt  thou  even  annul  my  judgment? 
Condemn  me,  that  thou  mayest  be  justified. 
Or  hast  thou  an  arm  like  God? 
And  canst  thou  thunder  with  a  voice  like  him? 
88 


THE  STRUCTURE  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

Then  Job  answered  Jehovah  and  said:  62 

I  know  that  thou  canst  do  all  things,  per-' 

And  that  no  purpose  of  thine  can  be  restrained.  reailL. 
Therefore,  I  have  uttered  that  which  I  did  not  under-  tioVof 

stand;  ^«,f« 

Things  too  wonderful  for  me,  which  I  knew  not.  ^Jl^Jj; 

I  have  heard  of  thee  by  the  hearing  of  the  ear,  (42'.  % 

But  now  mine  eye  seeth  thee,  ' ''  '^ 
Therefore  I  loath  [my  words]. 
And  repent  in  dust  and  ashes. 

I.  The  Structure  of  the  Book  of  Job.  Like  most  of  the  books  of 
the  Old  Testament,  Job  is,  without  reasonable  doubt,  the  work  of  several 
different  UTiters.  The  prose  introduction  (1-2),  with  its  corresponding 
conclusion  (42''''),  was  probably  once  an  independent  story.  The  words 
of  Jehovah  in  the  epilogue  (42')  clearly  implies  that,  as  in  1  and  2,  Job 
had  endured  the  test  and  had  meekly  submitted  to  the  afflictions  which 
Satan,  with  the  divine  approval,  had  sent  upon  him,  and  that  on  the 
other  hand  his  friends,  like  his  wife,  had  urged  him  to  curse  God  and 
die.  The  language  and  phrases  of  this  prose  story  are  radically  different 
from  those  in  the  poem  which  constitutes  the  main  body  of  the  book. 
The  unique  explanation  of  why  Job  was  afflicted  that  is  given  in  the 
opening  chapters  is  also  completely  ignored  inthe  poetic  dialogues  (3-31). 
Likewise  the  problem  of  whether  or  not  Job  fears  God  for  naught,  raised 
in  the  prologue,  is  not  taken  up  again  except  in  the  concluding  prose  epi- 
logue. In  the  prose  story  Job's  piety  conforms  to  the  popular  standards, 
while  in  the  poetic  sections  he  is  measured  by  the  loftier  ethical  prin- 
ciples laid  down  by  the  pre-exilic  prophets  {cf.  chap.  31 ).  In  form,  there- 
fore, in  aim,  and  in  content,  the  prose  story  differs  fundamentally  from 
the  great  dramatic  poem  which  constitutes  the  real  book  of  Job.  The 
main  body  of  the  book  is  found  in  chapters  3-27,  29-31,  3S'-40",  and 
42*"'.  At  a  few  points  the  original  order  has  apparently  been  disar- 
ranged and  later  hands  have  frequently  supplemented  the  older  sections, 
but  the  literary  unity  of  the  whole  is  obvious.  In  three  cycles  of  speeches 
the  problem  of  innocent  suffering  is  fully  developed  and  the  current  solu- 
tions presented.  In  conclusion  the  voice  of  Jehovah  comes  to  Job  call- 
ing him  forth  from  himself  to  the  contemplation  of  the  larger  universe 
which  manifests  the  divine  wisdom  and  rulership. 

The  Elihu  speeches  in  32-37  are  evidently  from  a  still  later  author  or 
authors  who  wished  to  rebuke  Job's  seeming  impiety  and  the  failure  of 

89 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

his  friends  to  bring  forth  a  satisfactory  explanation  of  the  suffering  of 
the  innocent.  Its  independence  is  shown  by  the  presence  of  many 
Aramaic  words,  by  the  lack  of  literary  vigor,  and  by  the  frequent  repeti- 
tions, which  distinguish  it  sharply  from  the  writings  of  the  author  of  the 
main  body  of  the  book.  Elihu  and  his  contributions  are  also  completely 
ignored  in  the  rest  of  the  book  and  at  points  where,  if  they  were  original, 
certain  references  would  be  almost  inevitable.  These  speeches,  in  fact, 
are  simply  a  fuller  development  of  the  argument  of  Eliphaz  found  in  the 
fifth  chapter.  They  also  incorporate  many  suggestions  drawn  from  the 
speeches  of  Jehovah  in  chaptei's  38  and  39. 

II.  Dates  of  the  Different  Parts.  The  classic  Hebrew  style  and 
the  absence  of  Aramaic  words  indicate  that  the  prose  story  is  the  oldest 
section  of  the  book.  It  also  reasserts  in  modified  form  the  dogma  cur- 
rent far  down  into  the  Persian  period,  that  if  the  righteous  but  patiently 
bear  aflBiction  they  will  surely  in  the  end  be  richly  rewarded.  It  con- 
tains a  message  well  adapted  to  the  needs  and  beliefs  of  the  Jewish 
people  during  the  calamities  of  the  Babylonian  period.  Its  conception 
of  Satan  as  the  prosecuting  attorney  of  heaven,  and  of  Jehovah  as  a 
transcendental  ruler  surrounded  by  a  hierarchy  of  angels,  is  closely  akin 
to  that  which  first  appears  in  the  second  chapter  of  Zechariah.  The 
references  to  Job  in  Ezekiel  14"-  ^'',  as  one  of  the  three  heroes  of  popular 
tradition  famous  for  their  piety,  implies  the  existence  during  the  exile  of 
a  story  closely  akin  to  if  not  identical  with  the  one  found  in  the  prologue 
and  epilogue  of  the  book  of  Job.  Such  a  story  was  probably  current 
long  before  the  days  of  Ezekiel,  but  in  its  present  form  it  was  not  com- 
mitted to  writing  until  the  latter  part  of  the  Babylonian  or  the  begin- 
ning of  the  Persian  period. 

The  first  part  of  this  story  was  evidently  used  by  the  author  as  an 
introduction  to  the  great  dramatic  poem.  He  thereby  deliberately  pro- 
tested against  the  solution  of  the  problem  of  innocent  suffering  sug- 
gested by  the  ancient  story.  The  poem  itself  cannot  be  dated  earlier 
than  the  middle  of  the  Persian  period.  In  it  the  great  ethical  and  social 
standards  of  the  pre-exilic  prophets  are  fully  accepted.  Its  marvellous 
breadth  of  vision  also  implies  an  advanced  stage  in  Israel's  thinking. 
The  problem  of  suffering  with  which  it  deals  is  not  merely  that  of  the 
nation  but  of  the  individual  or  of  a  class  within  the  Judean  community. 
It  is  precisely  the  problem  that  confronted  the  author  of  Malachi  and 
to  which  he  refers  in  3"■'^  It  is  the  same  problem  that  bulks  largely  in 
the  psalms  of  this  period  and  finds  its  noblest  solution  in  Isaiah  53.  All 
its  affinities,  therefore,  confirm  the  conclusion  that  it  comes  from  the 

90 


DATES  OF  THE  DIFFERENT  PARTS 

middle  of  the  fifth  century  B.C.  and  is  probably  slightly  older  than 
Isaiah  49-55,  which  presents  a  more  fundamental  treatment  of  the 
problem  of  human  suffering.  The  author  still  holds  the  old,  prophetic 
conception  of  the  universe  (38^' '),  and  is  unaffected  by  the  priestly 
thought  and  tendencies  which  became  especially  prominent  during  the 
closing  years  of  the  Persian  period. 

The  Elihu  speeches  and  the  supplemental  poem  in  description  of 
wisdom  in  28,  and  of  the  behemoth  and  leviathan  in  40'°-4PS  probably 
come  from  the  Greek  period. 

III.  The  Prose  Story.  In  the  prose  story  Job  is  pictured  as  a  man 
of  superlative  piety  and  prosperity.  According  to  the  popular  standards 
of  the  earlier  day  he  lived  a  blameless  life.  His  afflictions  came  simply 
as  a  means  of  demonstrating  the  unselfish  character  of  his  piety.  In 
rapid  succession  he  is  stripped  of  all  his  possessions  and  afflicted  by 
the  vilest  of  all  diseases,  apparently  the  loathsome  tubercular  leprosy. 
Even  his  wife  tempts  him  to  curse  God  and  die,  but  he  fully  meets  the 
test,  and,  according  to  the  testimony  of  the  concluding  epilogue,  receives 
Jehovah's  approval  and  is  restored  to  the  joys  of  family,  reputation, 
and  riches.  It  is  obvious  that,  as  in  the  stories  found  in  the  opening 
chapters  of  Genesis,  this  is  a  popular  narrative  freely  adjusted  to  the 
ends  which  the  story-teller  wished  to  attain.  The  incidents  recorded 
are  not  in  keeping  with  the  ordinary  experiences  of  life,  but  belong 
rather  to  the  realm  of  popular  fancy.  As  a  reference  in  Ezekiel  implies, 
it  was  probably,  like  the  similar  stories  regarding  Noah  and  Daniel,  a 
heritage  from  the  common  Semitic  lore.  In  fact,  a  recently  discovered 
Babylonian  tablet  tells  of  a  famous  king  of  Nippur,  Tabi-utul-Bel  by 
name,  whose  experiences  and  spirit  corresponds  closely  to  those  of  the 
hero  of  this  prose  story. 

The  message  of  the  prose  story  of  Job,  as  it  was  sent  out  to  the  Jewish 
race,  was  that  it  was  not  always  possible  to  understand  the  reason  why 
the  righteous  were  afflicted,  but  that  if  they  faithfully  met  the  test 
restoration  to  Jehovah's  approval,  with  the  honor  and  reputation  that 
necessarily  follow,  were  assured.  To  the  nation  such  a  message  was 
not  without  its  practical  application  and  value,  but  it  failed  completely 
to  meet  the  individual  problems  that  became  pathetically  insistent  dur- 
ing the  middle  of  the  fifth  century  B.C. 

IV.  The  Poem  of  Job.  In  the  later  poetic  version  of  the  story 
(which  begins  with  the  third  chapter)  Job  himself  is  the  embodiment  of 
the  problem  of  innocent  suffering.  His  friends'  suppositions  and  con- 
demnations add  still  another  burden  to  his  weight  of  woe.    More  m- 

91 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

tolerable,  however,  than  loss  of  possessions,  health,  and  reputation  !s 
his  sense  of  being  forsaken  and  condemned  by  Jehovah.  Job  cannot 
shake  himself  entirely  free  from  the  belief,  which  had  been  inculcated 
in  his  mind  from  earliest  infancy,  that  calamity  was  a  sign  of  divine  dis- 
pleasure, and  therefore  of  sin  on  the  part  of  the  victim.  In  the  series  of 
monologues  and  dialogues  between  Job  and  his  friends  he  voices  every 
phase  of  the  great  problem  and  makes  it  concrete  and  objective.  With 
marvellous  psychological  truth  and  insight  the  author  has  presented  the 
different  phases  of  feeling  through  which  an  innocent  sufferer  in  Job's 
position  naturally  passes.  At  times  Job  is  intemperate  in  his  speech 
and  at  other  times  he  yields  to  despondency;  again  his  faith  overleaps 
all  obstacles  and  he  holds  for  the  moment  a  clear  belief  in  the  ultimate 
vindication  not  only  of  himself  but  of  Jehovah's  justice. 

His  friends,  on  the  other  hand,  formulate  at  length  the  current  ex- 
planation of  suffering.  Job  in  his  sharp  retorts  makes  clear  the  inap- 
plicability of  the  arguments  and  the  limitations  of  the  dogmas  which 
they  constantly  reassert.  In  the  concluding  speeches  of  Jehovah  the 
author  with  masterly  skill  takes  Job  out  of  his  little  circle  into  the 
larger  world  of  nature,  and  brings  him  face  to  face  with  the  evidences  of 
Jehovah's  might,  wisdom,  and  gracious  rulership  of  the  great  universe 
and  of  the  complex  life  of  those  who  inhabit  it.  Above  all.  Job  learns  to 
know  God,  not  through  the  testimony  of  others,  but  by  direct  personal 
experience,  and  this  knowledge  begets  humility  and  trust. 

V.  Progress  in  Job's  Thought.  The  thought  of  the  book  of  Job 
is  characteristically  Oriental.  Instead  of  moving  straight  on  from  prem- 
ises to  conclusion  it  constantly  reverts  to  the  same  themes  yet  advances 
along  independent,  parallel  lines.  Its  progress  is  not  objective,  as  is 
usually  the  case  in  a  drama,  but  almost  entirely  subjective.  These 
parallel  lines  of  progress  are:  (1)  the  conviction  gradually  crystallizing 
into  certainty  that  the  current  explanations  of  suffering  are  in  certain 
cases  inadequate  and  false.  While  viewed  from  one  point  of  view  this 
conclusion  is  merely  negative,  it  nevertheless  opened  the  eyes  of  Job 
and  his  generation  to  a  larger  conception  of  Jehovah  and  a  far  broader 
interpretation  of  the  universe  and  of  the  laws  which  regulate  it.  The 
second  is  that  he  is  guilty  of  no  crime  commensurate  with  the  calamity 
which  had  overtaken  him.  Overwhelmed  by  misfortune  and  the  reiter- 
ated charges  of  his  friends,  only  through  a  superhuman  struggle  did 
Job  ultimately  attain  the  unshaken  conviction  that  he  was  indeed  inno- 
cent in  the  sight  of  God  and  man.  The  third  line  of  progress  is  that,  if 
not  in  the  present  life,  in  that  beyond  the  grave  his  reputation  would 

92 


PROGRESS  IN  JOB'S  THOUGHT 

not  only  be  vindicated  but  he  himself  would  be  fully  conscious  of  that 

vindication. 

As  is  illustrated  by  the  third  chapter,  Job  in  common  with  his  race 
still  shared  the  belief  that  for  the  ordinary  individual  life  beyond  the 
grave  was  a  shadowy  existence,  far  removed  from  Jehovah's  presence. 
This  conception  of  the  life  after  death  was  inherited  by  the  Israelites 
from  their  Semitic  ancestors,  and  was  held  in  common  by  most  ancient 
peoples,  both  of  the  East  and  of  the  West.  The  Babylonians  believed, 
however,  that  certain  favored  mortals,  as,  for  example,  the  hero  of  the 
flood,  were  transported  to  the  abode  of  the  gods,  there  to  enjoy  blessed 
individual  immortality.  The  same  belief  is  the  foundation  of  the  He- 
brew stories  regarding  Enoch  and  Elijah.  This  belief  was  apparently 
the  germ  which  in  time  developed,  as  in  the  twelfth  chapter  of  Daniel, 
into  the  widespread  conviction  that  the  grave  would  not  hold  those  who 
had  been  loyal  to  Jehovah,  but  that  he  would  surely  raise  them  again 
to  a  glorious  life.  In  the  book  of  Job  it  is  possible  to  trace  the  birth- 
pangs  of  this  broader  hope.  Conscious  of  his  innocence  and  confronted 
by  the  grave.  Job  repeatedly  voices  the  deep  conviction  that  God,  be- 
cause he  is  just,  will  raise  his  afflicted  servant  from  the  grave  and  accord 
to  him  that  justice  which  seems  excluded  from  his  present  life.  This 
solution  of  the  problem  of  innocent  suffering  is  not  given  the  central 
place  by  the  author  of  the  book  of  Job.  It  is  safe,  however,  to  conject- 
ure that  if  the  appearance  of  Jehovah  had  not  furnished  to  the  author's 
mina  a  more  satisfactory  conclusion,  the  vindication  after  death  would 
have  been  the  solution  offered.  At  several  points  Job  approaches  very 
close  to  the  belief  in  individual  immortality  which  became  a  commonly 
accepted  tenet  in  the  trying  days  of  the  Maccabean  struggle. 

The  fourth  line  of  progress  is  that  Jehovah,  after  all,  must  be  just  and 
that  he  will  right  the  seeming  wrongs  of  life.  In  his  opening  speeches 
Job  gives  free  vent  to  the  anguish  and  impatience  that  fills  his  tortured 
mind.  With  a  boldness  strangely  foreign  to  Hebrew  thought,  he  charges 
Jehovah  with  injustice  and  speaks  of  him  as  a  cruel  monster  that  watches 
man,  his  helpless  prey,  and  takes  cruel  pleasure  in  the  pain  which  he 
inflicts.  As  the  discussion  progresses  Job's  mind  becomes  calmer,  and 
the  conviction  that  God,  after  all,  is  just  comes  more  clearly  to  expres- 
sion. His  strong  utterances  gradually  yield  to  this  quieter  mood. 
Even  before  he  hears  the  voice  of  Jehovah,  Job  has  attained  an 
attitude  of  trust,  though  he  is  still  groping  in  darkness.  Thus  with 
marvellous  fidelity  to  human  nature  and  experience  the  author  of  the 
book  of  Job  would  have  made  a  great  contribution  to  the  problem  with 

93 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  TPIE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

which  he  was  dealing  even  had  he  not  added  the  concluding  speeches 
of  Jehovah. 

VI.  Significance  of  the  Speeches  of  Jehovah.  To  many  Western 
readers  the  concluding  speeches  of  Jehovah  are  unsatisfying.  They  lack 
the  emphasis  on  Jehovah's  love  and  that  divine  tenderness  in  addressing 
the  heroic  sufferer  which  to  us  would  seem  to  have  been  a  satisfactory 
conclusion  to  the  great  drama.  This  element  is  furnished  in  character- 
istically concrete  form  by  the  epilogue  of  the  book,  in  which  Job's  pros- 
perity is  restored  in  double  measure  and  he  is  personally  assured  of 
Jehovah's  favor.  The  severe  and  realistic  author  of  the  great  poem, 
however,  knew  that  in  ordinary  life  such  solutions  are  rare.  In  the 
speeches  of  Jehovah  he  does  not  introduce  an  altogether  new  element, 
but  emphasizes  motifs  already  developed  in  the  earlier  dialogues.  The 
effect  of  these  speeches  upon  Job  are  threefold:  (1)  They  rebuke  his 
over-accentuated  individualism.  (2)  They  reveal  the  fundamental  con- 
trast between  the  infinite  God  and  finite  man.  In  the  light  of  this  reve- 
lation Job  plainly  recognizes  his  presumption  and  folly  in  attempting, 
with  his  limited  outlook,  to  comprehend,  much  less  to  criticise,  the 
mighty  ruler  of  all  the  universe.  (3)  After  Job  had  thus  been  led  out 
of  himself  into  personal  companionship  with  God  he  was  content  to  trust 
his  all-wise  guide,  even  though  he  recognized  his  own  inability  to  fathom 
the  mysteries  of  the  universe  or  to  solve  the  problem  of  innocent  suffering. 

Thus  the  great  contributions  of  the  book  of  Job  to  the  problem  of 
suffering  are:  (1)  A  clear  and  scientific  presentation  of  the  problem; 
(2)  a  bold  sweeping  aside  of  the  insufficient  current  theological  explana- 
tions; (3)  a  vastly  enlarged  conception  of  Jehovah's  character  and  rule; 
and  (4)  that  attitude  of  faith  which  comes  from  a  personal  experience 
of  God  and  which  trusts  unreservedly,  even  though  it  cannot  see  or 
divine  the  reason  why,  and  in  that  trust  finds  peace  and  joy. 

Although  the  thought  of  the  book  of  Job  is  profound,  and  it  deals  in 
a  masterly  manner  with  a  fundamental  human  problem,  it  is  more  than 
a  mere  philosojihical  discussion.  Its  primary  aim  is  to  set  forth  the  vital 
truth  that  God  is  not  to  be  found  through  current  theological  dogmas 
or  intellectual  discussions,  but  through  personal  experience.  This  is 
the  dominant  note  throughout  the  book.  The  greatest  calamity  that 
overtakes  Job  in  his  hour  of  deepest  distress  is  the  sense  of  being  shut 
away  from  God's  presence. 

Oh!  that  I  knew  where  I  might  find  him. 
That  I  might  come  even  to  his  throne! 
94 


SIGNIFICANCE   OF  THE   SPEECHES   OF   JEHOVAH 

As  he  looks  back  fondly  to  the  happy  days  of  old  the  fact  that  stands 
forth  above  all  others  is  that 

The  Almighty  was  yet  with  me. 

Looking  forward  to  a  possible  vmdication  after  death  his  hope  centres 
in  the  belief  that 

Thou  wouldst  call  and  I  myself  would  answer  thee; 
Thou  wouldst  long  for  the  work  of  thy  hands. 

When  at  last  Jeho%'ah  answered  Job  out  of  the  storm,  it  was  not  so  much 
the  thought  expressed  as  the  fact  that  God  had  spoken  directly  to  him 
that  brought  penitence  and  peace: 

I  have  heard  of  thee  by  the  hearing  of  the  ear, 
But  now  mine  eye  seeth  thee. 
Therefore  I  loath  my  words. 
And  repent  in  dust  and  ashes. 

§  XCIX.     THE  TRAINING  AND  MISSION  OF  THE  TRUE 
SERVANT  OF  JEHOVAH 

Hearken  to  me,  ye  coastlands,  i.  caii 

And  listen,  ye  distant  peoples: 

Jehovah  hath  called  me  from  the  womb, 

From  my  mother's  lap  made  mention  of  my  name.         hovaha 

He  hath  made  my  mouth  like  a  sharp  sword,  savant 

In  the  shadow  of  his  hand  he  hid  me,  (•«. 

He  made  me  a  polished  arrow, 

In  his  quiver  he  concealed  me. 

And  he  said  to  me,  Thou  art  my  servant, 

Israel,  in  whom  I  will  glorify  myself. 

But  I  said,  I  have  labored  in  vain,  2.  Hi3 

I  spent  my  strength  for  nothing  and  vanity,  deiue 

Nevertheless  my  right  is  with  Jehovah,  }{J^;J|^ 

And  my  recompense  with  my  God.  (.') 

And  now,  thus  saith  Jehovah,  ^;,^jf. 

(He  who  formed  from  birth  to  be  his  servant,  ^iJe. 

To  bring  Jacob  back  to  him,  ^'?)'°'* 
95 


and 
prepa- 
ration 
of  Je- 


THE  TRAINING  OF  THE  SERVANT  OF  JEHOVAH 

And  that  Israel  might  be  gathered  to  him; 

For  I  was  honored  in  the  sight  of  Jehovah, 

And  my  God  became  my  strength) : 

It  is  too  little  a  thing  to  be  my  servant, 

To  raise  up  the  tribes  of  Jacob, 

And  to  restore  the  survivors  of  Israel; 

Therefore  I  will  make  thee  the  light  of  the  nations, 

That  thy  salvation  may  reach  to  the  ends  of  the  earth. 

Thus  saith  Jehovah, 

The  Redeemer  of  Israel,  his  Holy  One, 

To  him  who  is  heartily  despised, 

To  the  one  abhorred  of  the  people,  a  servant  of  rulers: 

Kings  shall  see  and  arise. 

Princes  and  they  shall  do  homage, 

Because  of  Jehovah  who  is  faithful, 

The  Holy  One  of  Israel  who  hath  chosen  thee. 

Thus  saith  Jehovah, 

In  a  time  of  favor  I  answer  thee. 

And  in  a  day  of  deliverance  I  help  thee. 

And  I  make  thee  a  pledge  to  the  people, 

To  raise  up  the  [ruined]  land. 

To  reapportion  the  desolate  heritages, 

Saying  to  those  who  are  bound,  'Go  forth,* 

To  those  in  darkness,  'Show  yourselves!* 

They  shall  pasture  along  all  ways. 

Even  on  all  the  bare  hills  shall  they  graze. 

They  shall  not  be  hungry  nor  thirsty, 

Neither  shall  the  glowing  heat  nor  the  sun  smite  them, 

For  he  who  hath  pity  on  them  shall  lead  them, 

And  to  gushing  fountains  will  he  guide  them. 

And  I  will  make  all  mountains  a  road. 

And  highways  shall  be  built  up. 

Behold,  these  come  from  afar. 
And  these  from  the  north  and  west. 
And  these  from  the  land  of  the  Syenites! 
Shout  with  joy,  O  heavens,  and  exult,  0  earth! 
96 


THE  TRAINING  OF  THE  SERVANT  OF   JEHOVAH 

Let  the  mountains  break  forth  into  shouts  of  joy! 
For  Jehovah  hath  had  pity  on  his  people, 
And  will  show  mercy  to  his  afflicted  ones. 

The  Lord  Jehovah  hath  given  me  the  tongue  of  a  trained  8. 

disciple?  ?;-;n-^ 

To  give  to  the  fainting  a  word  of  help,  he  waketh  me  early,  ^tu- 
Early  he  waketh  me,  that  I  may  listen  as  a  disciple.  of  the 

The  Lord  Jehovah  hath  opened  mine  ear,  (so'^" 

And  I  have  not  been  wilful  nor  turned  back  rebelliously. 


My  back  I  gave  to  smiters  and  my  cheek  to  those  who  9. 

plucked  the  beard, 
My  face  I  hid  not  from  insult  and  spitting. 
For  my  Lord  Jehovah  is  my  helper;  so  that  I  am  not  con-  amidst 

founded.  cutfon 

Therefore  I  have  set  my  face  like  flint,  and  I  know  that  I 

shall  not  be  put  to  shame. 


Faith 
and  de- 
termi- 
nation 


(6.7) 


He  is  near  who  justifieth  me,  who  will  contend  with  me?  lo.  As- 
let  us  stand  up  together!  ^(A^uu!- 

Who  is  the  adversary  to  oppose  my  cause?  let  him  draw  ^^^®j. 
near  to  me!  cation 

Behold  the  Lord  Jehovah  is  my  helper ;  who  is  he  that  can  ^''  '^ 
harm  me? 

Lo,  they  shall  all  fall  to  pieces  like  a  garment,  the  moth  shall 
consume  them. 

Who  among  you  feareth  Jehovah,  let  him  hearken  to  the  ii. 

voice  of  his  servant?  e^'ot 

Who  walked  in  darkness,  having  no  light, 
Let  him  trust  in  the  name  of  Jehovah  and  rely  on  his  God?  mem 

Behold,  my  servant  shall  prosper,  12. 

He  shall  be  raised  up  and  highly  exalted.  l^^ny 

Even  as  many  were  appalled  at  him,  gf^Jej^ 

So  shall  many  nations  tremble,  to  the 

Kings  will  close  their  mouths  before  him,  his'^s^e"-^ 

When  what  has  not  been  told  them  they  see,  yant 

And  what  they  have  not  heard  they  perceive.  »■") 
97 


encour- 
age- 


THE  TRAINING  OF  THE  SERVANT  OF  JEHOVAH 

Who  believed  what  has  been  reported  to  us, 
And  to  whom  was  Jehovah's  might  revealed? 
For  he  grew  up  before  us  as  a  young  shoot, 
And  as  a  root  out  of  dry  ground. 

He  had  no  form  that  we  should  regard  him, 
Nor  appearance  that  we  should  delight  in  him. 
His  appearance  was  more  disfigured  than  any  man'S; 
And  his  form  than  any  hmnan  being's. 

He  was  despised  and  forsaken  of  men, 

A  man  of  suffering  and  acquainted  with  sickness; 

Like  one  for  whom  men  hide  their  face. 

He  was  despised  so  that  we  esteemed  him  not. 

Surely  our  sickness  he  himself  bore, 
And  our  sufferings — he  carried  them. 
Yet  we  ourselves  esteemed  him  stricken, 
Smitten  of  God  and  afflicted. 

But  he  was  wounded  for  our  transgressions, 
Crushed  because  of  our  iniquities ; 
The  chastisement  for  our  wellbeing  was  upon  him. 
And  through  his  stripes  healing  came  to  us. 

All  of  us,  like  sheep,  had  gone  astray. 
We  had  turned  each  to  his  own  way; 
While  Jehovah  made  to  light  upon  him 
The  guilt  of  us  all. 

Yet  when  afflicted  he  opened  not  his  mouth; 
Like  a  lamb  led  to  the  slaughter. 
And  like  a  sheep  dumb  before  her  shearers, 
So  he  opened  not  his  mouth. 

By  an  oppressive  judgment  was  he  taken  away, 
Yet  who  of  his  generation  considered 
That  he  had  been  cut  off  from  the  land  of  the  living  [ 
For  our  transgressions  had  been  stricken  to  death? 
98 


mony 

(Uo-U) 


PORTRAITS   OF   JEHOVAH'S  SERVANT 

And  his  grave  was  made  with  the  wicked,  2i.vio. 

And  among  evil-doers  his  burial  mound,  *n"s/ 

Although  he  had  done  no  violence,  t'"^®  ^'^ 
Neither  was  deceit  in  his  mouth. 

Yet  Jehovah  was  pleased  to  crush  him ;  22.  Yet 

Through  giving  himself  as  an  offering  for  guilt,  [ng  je- 

He  shall  see  posterity  and  length  of  days,  purpose 

And  the  pleasure  of  Jehovah  will  be  realized  in  his  hands ;  ("'•'"') 
Out  of  his  own  suffering  he  shall  see  light, 
He  shall  be  satisfied  with  his  knowledge. 

My  righteous  servant  shall  make  many  righteous,  23.  je- 

And  himself  will  bear  the  burden  of  their  iniquities.  con^*^^ 
Therefore  I  will  give  him  a  portion  among  the  great,  tlsu-"^ 
And  with  the  strong  shall  he  divide  spoil. 
Because  he  poured  out  his  life-blood, 
And  was  numbered  with  transgressors, 
And  himself  bore  the  sins  of  many. 
And  interposed  for  transgressors. 

I.  The  Different  Portraits  of  Jehovah's  Servant.  Isaiah  49-54 
contains  three  distinct  portraits  of  the  ideal  servant  of  Jehovah.  Each 
in  turn  develops  characteristics  suggested  in  the  preceding.  These  de- 
scriptions are  interspersed  with  exhortations  addressed  to  Jehovah's 
servant  Israel  and  assurances  that  God  will  fully  restore  Jerusalem  and 
bring  back  her  scattered  children.  These  three  portraits  of  the  t}'pe  of 
servant  that  Jehovah  required  to  realize  his  purpose  in  human  history, 
together  with  the  earlier  portrait  in  42*"^,  supplement  each  other.  In 
the  first  of  these  four  (42*'^)  the  prophetic  qualities  of  the  servant  are 
especially  emphasized.  Like  the  earlier  prophets,  he  will  not  fail  nor 
be  discouraged  until  he  has  established  justice  in  the  earth.  His  task 
is  to  open  blind  eyes  and  to  deliver  prisoners  from  the  darkness  of  igno- 
rance and  sin  in  which  they  were  sitting.  In  the  second  picture  (49^""") 
the  world-wide  mission  of  the  servant  is  emphasized.  He  is  called  not 
only  to  gather  the  outcasts  of  Israel,  but  also  as  an  apostle  to  bring  light 
to  all  the  nations  of  the  earth.  In  this  passage  for  the  first  time  appears 
that  note  of  suffering  and  ignominy  which  is  the  lot  of  the  true  servant 
of  Jehovah.  In  the  third  portrait  (50*-'")  the  servant  is  pictured  as  a 
disciple,  attentively  listening  to  the  divine  teachings,  learning  the  les- 

99 


THE  TRAINING  OF  THE  SERVANT  OF  JEHOVAH 

sons  which  will  fit  him  in  turn  to  become  a  teacher  of  men.  The  last 
and  fullest  picture  (52''-53'')  describes  at  length  his  suffering.  A  strong 
contrast  is  drawn  between  his  present  shame  and  ignominy  and  the 
future  glory  and  victory  which  he  will  achieve  through  his  voluntary 
and  complete  self-sacrifice.  These  pictures  embody  the  prophet's  ideal, 
and  they  can  be  fully  understood  only  in  the  light  of  their  historical 
background. 

II.  The  Prophet's  Purpose.  In  his  earlier  poems  this  great  im- 
known  prophet  dealt  largely  with  the  interpretation  of  Israel's  past  his- 
tory and  the  proclamation  of  the  coming  deliverance  (40-48).  Hia 
chief  aims  in  chapters  49-55  may  be  briefly  epitomized  as  follows:  (1)  to 
interpret  the  inner  meaning  of  the  period  of  adversity  through  which  the 
Jewish  race  was  then  passing;  (2)  to  make  absolutely  clear  the  charac- 
ter and  quality  of  the  service  that  Jehovah  required  of  his  chosen  peo- 
ple, if  they  were  to  realize  his  purpose  in  human  history;  (3)  to  inspire 
them  all  to  make  the  needed  sacrifices  and  thus  to  prove  themselves  true 
servants  of  Jehovah;  (4)  especially  to  make  plain  to  the  innocent  and 
faithful  sufferers  in  the  Judean  community  the  real  meaning  and  value 
of  their  present  shame  and  suffering,  if  bravely  and  voluntarily  borne. 

III.  Character  and  Condition  of  Those  to  Whom  the  Prophet 
Appealed.  From  the  allusions  in  the  prophecies  themselves  it  is  pos- 
sible to  determine  the  classes  that  the  prophet  had  in  mind.  In  49*  his 
address  is  to  the  coast  lands  and  the  distant  peoples  who  lived  at  the 
extremities  of  Israel's  horizon.  It  is  not  probable,  however,  that  he 
anticipated  that  his  message  in  its  present  form  would  go  out  as  it 
has  to  all  races  and  nations;  rather  his  attention  was  fixed  on  the 
scattered  members  of  his  own  race,  those  who  lived  in  the  north  and 
the  west  and  in  the  distant  city  of  Syene,  far  up  the  Nile  (49*^).  In 
49^  he  clearly  identifies  the  nation  Israel  as  Jehovah's  servant,  whom 
■ie  makes  declare : 

Jehovah  said  to  me.  Thou  art  my  servant, 
Israel,  in  whom  I  will  glorify  myself. 

It  is  evident,  however,  that  the  prophet  has  especially  in  mind  the 
Judean  community  amidst  which  he  lived  and  for  which  he  worked. 
In  54,  as  elsewhere,  he  calls  upon  this  group  of  discouraged  Jews  to 
enlarge  their  tent,  for  their  period  of  punishment  is  over  and  their  foun- 
dation and  walls  are  about  to  be  rebuilt.  At  last  they  shall  cease  to 
tremble  at  the  fury  of  the  oppressor.    In  51"'^°  he  addresses  Jerusalem 

100 


THOSE  TO  WHOM  THE  PROPHET  APPEALED 

directly  and  gives  a  vivid  picture  of  its  condition  before  the  appearance 
of  Nehemiah: 

Rouse  thee!     Rouse  thee!  stand  up,  O  Jerusalem, 

Who  hast  drunk  at  Jehovah's  hand  the  cup  of  his  wrath! 

The  bowl  of  reeling  thou  hast  drunken,  hast  drained! 

There  is  none  to  guide  thee  of  all  the  sons  whom  thou  hast 
borne, 

And  none  to  take  thee  by  the  hand  of  all  the  sons  whom  thou  hast 
reared. 

These  two  things  have  befallen  thee — who  can  condole  with  thee? 

Desolation  and  destruction,  famine  and  the  sword — who  can  com- 
fort thee? 

IV.  The  Task  and  Training  of  Jehovah's  Servant.  The  term 
.'crvant  means  literally  slave,  not  in  the  Western  sense,  but  in  that  of 
the  ancient  East,  where  a  slave  was  often  a  privileged  member  of  society. 
In  many  a  Hebrew  household  the  slaves,  next  to  the  children,  enjoyed 
the  protection  and  consideration  of  the  master  of  the  household.  He 
was  under  obligation  to  guard  their  welfare  and  interests.  On  the  other 
hand,  slaves,  like  Eleazar  in  the  story  of  Abraham  (Gen.  26)  faithfully 
cared  for  the  interests  of  their  master  and  spared  no  effort  to  carry  out 
his  commands.  Semitic  usage  had  also  given  the  term  slave  a  significant 
meaning.  The  faithful  officials  of  all  Oriental  kings  called  themselves 
his  servants  or  slaves.  It  was  the  common  term  expressing,  on  the  one 
hand,  confidence  and  protection,  and  on  the  other,  devotion,  loyalty,  and 
service.  Most  of  Israel's  patriarchs,  kings,  and  prophets  are  spoken 
of  as  the  servants  or  slaves  of  Jehovah.  Haggai,  in  his  address  to 
Zerubbabel,  called  him  Jehovah's  servant.  In  Deuteronomy  32^*'  "  the 
people  of  Israel  are  called  the  servants  of  Jehovah,  and,  as  has  been 
noted,  in  the  prophecies  of  the  II  Isaiah  they  are  frequently  referred  to 
as  the  servant  of  Jehovah.  The  term,  therefore,  was  well  chosen  to  ex- 
press that  complete  devotion  and  loyalty  to  Jehovah  which  the  prophet 
aimed  to  evoke  from  his  fellow-countrymen.  It  was  also  free  from  the 
kingly  associations  and  material  interpretation  that  were  connected  with 
the  word  Messiah. 

The  prophet's  aim  was  to  present  so  vividly  the  task  and  methods  of 
the  true  servant  of  Jehovah  that  all  would  recognize  a  personal  call  to 
duty.  He  emphasizes  three  distinct  yet  related  elements  in  the  mission 
of  the  servant.    They  were:   (1)  To  free  the  prisoners  from  their  cap- 

101 


THE  TRAINING  OF  THE  SERVANT  OF  JEHOVAH 

tivity,  whether  imprisoned  by  walls  of  stone  or  brick  or  under  the  tjTtinny 
of  fears  and  false  ideas.  (2)  To  restore  the  scattered  tribes  of  Israel 
and  thus  to  lay  the  foundations  for  a  renewed  national  life  that  would 
furnish  concrete  evidence  to  all  the  world  of  Jehovah's  power  to  deliver. 
(3)  To  go  beyond  the  narrow  bounds  of  their  race  and  to  bring  to  the 
nations  that  were  groping  in  the  darkness  of  heathenism  the  knowl- 
edge and  truth  that  had  been  imparted  to  Israel.  Thus  the  unknown 
prophet  laid  the  foundations  for  that  Kingdom  of  God,  that  dominion 
of  God  in  nature  and  in  the  minds  of  men  that  was  the  guide  and  in- 
spiration of  all  later  prophets  and  the  goal  for  whose  realization  the 
Great  Teacher  and  Prophet  of  Nazareth  labored  and  died. 

The  prophet  places  great  emphasis  upon  the  training  of  Jehovah's 
servant.  He  declares  that  from  birth  Jehovah  formed  him  to  be  his 
servant.  In  50*''  he  is  spoken  of  as  a  trained  disciple  attentively 
listening  to  the  words  of  his  divine  teacher,  never  rebelling  at  the 
bitterness  of  the  needful  discipline,  but  ever  seeking  to  prepare  him- 
self to  give  to  the  fainting  a  word  of  help.  The  steadfastness  with 
which  he  endures  shame  and  bitter  wrongs  is  the  evidence  of  his 
ability  as  a  disciple  and  an  essential  part  in  his  preparation  for  his 
exalted  mission. 

V.  Methods  of  Jehovah's  Servant.  In  accomplishing  his  task  the 
servant  is  to  use  definite  instruction,  but  his  teaching  is  to  be  illustrated 
by  his  own  character  and  attitude.  By  the  voluntary,  uncomplaining 
endurance  of  ignominy  and  suffering  he  is  to  do  Jehovah's  work  and 
win  the  grateful  recognition,  not  only  of  his  divine  Master,  but  of  all 
succeeding  generations.  Through  a  keen  analysis  of  life  the  prophet 
had  attained  to  a  clear  appreciation  of  the  inestimable  value  of  volun- 
tary self-sacrifice.  He  saw  that  it  was  the  most  effective  means  of  up- 
lifting the  race  and  leading  mankind  to  accept  God's  mastery  over  their 
minds  and  lives.  The  truth  here  presented  is  illustrated  in  human 
experience  as  clearly  to-day  as  in  the  past.  The  self-denying  service 
of  parents  is  absolutely  essential  if  their  children  are  ^o  attain  to  the 
noblest  manhood  and  womanhood.  Only  through  the]  self-sacrificing 
labors  of  those  who  love  their  fellow-men  can  social  ejnls  be  removed 
and  society  attain  its  highest  development.  The  loyr  standards  in  the 
business  and  professional  world  can  be  raised  only  as-certain  men,  with 
the  spirit  and  courage  of  the  ancient  prophets,  make  their  own  personal 
interests  and  popularity  subservient  to  the  rigorous  demands  of  justice. 
It  is  the  law  of  life  that  he  who  would  elevate  the  standards  of  his  asso- 
ciates and  thus  lead  men  to  the  fullest  realization  of  the  divine  ideals 

102 


METHODS  OF  JEHOVAH'S  SERVANT 

must  ordinarily  do  it  In  the  face  of  opposition,  ignominy,  and  seeming 
failure.  It  is  this  quiet,  heroic  self-sacrifice — the  heroism  of  the  com- 
monplace— that  the  great  prophet  proclaims  is  the  absolutely  essential 
characteristic  of  Jehovah's  servant.  Despised  by  his  contemporaries, 
the  victim  of  persecution  and  calamity,  he  must  do  his  task,  leaving  the 
reward  and  the  appreciation  to  Jehovah  and  to  the  enlightened  sense  of 
later  generations. 

VI.  Realization  of  the  Ideal  of  Service.  The  portrait  is  so  con- 
crete that  the  question  naturally  arises,  Who  was  the  servant  of  whom 
the  prophet  was  speaking  ?  Undoubtedly  the  tragic  experiences  of  such 
prophets  as  Jeremiah  suggested  many  elements  in  the  picture.  For 
half  a  century  that  faithful  servant  of  Jehovah  suffered,  often  shrink- 
ingly,  yet  voluntarily,  a  constant  martyrdom.  Upon  him  fell  the  perse- 
cutions of  his  countrymen.  Yet  in  the  life  of  later  Judaism  those  prin- 
ciples for  which  he  lived  and  died  gained  acceptance  and  application. 
Of  him  it  may  be  truly  said: 

He  was  numbered  with  trangressors, 
And  himself  bore  the  sins  of  many, 
And  interposed  for  transgressors. 

The  unknown  author  of  these  immortal  poems  spoke  out  of  the  depth 
of  his  own  painful  experience  and  doubtless  in  a  large  degree  realized 
the  ideals  of  service  which  he  thus  effectively  set  forth.  Those  of  his 
contemporaries  who,  amidst  persecution  and  insults,  in  their  lives  em- 
bodied the  ideals  of  the  earlier  prophets  were  crushed  like  Jeremiah 
because  of  the  iniquities  of  others;  but  by  thus  pouring  out  their  life- 
blood  they  brought  healing  to  their  race.  Nehemiah,  in  responding  to 
the  call  of  service  and  in  turning  his  back  upon  the  allurements  of  the 
Persian  court  in  order  to  rebuild  the  city  of  his  fathers,  proved  himself 
a  faithful  servant  of  Jehovah.  With  true  insight  the  Christian  Church 
has  always  recognized  that  in  the  character  and  life  of  Jesus  is  found 
the  only  complete  realization  of  this  ancient  ideal  of  service.  With  the 
immortal  chapters  of  the  II  Isaiah  he  was  clearly  familiar,  and  from 
them  he  doubtless  received  many  suggestions  regarding  his  divine  mis- 
sion and  the  methods  by  which  it  was  to  be  accomplished.  Their 
author  was  clearly  speaking  to  his  contemporaries;  but  in  portraying 
the  way  in  which  Jehovah's  purpose  in  human  history  could  alone  be 
realized  he  presented  an  ideal  which  has  a  permanent  significance  in 
the  thought  of  the  human  race.    Pfal  nghtly  recognized  that  the  same 

103 


NEHEMIAH'S  WORK 

responsibility  to  make  this  ideal  a  reality  rested  upon  him,  and  all  who 
would  serve  God,  Avhen  he  quoted  the  words  of  49'  (cf.  Acts  13^'); 

"I  have  set  thee  for  a  light  of  the  Gentiles 
That  thou  shouldst  be  for  salvation  to  the  uttermost  parts  of  the 
earth." 


§  C.     NEHEMIAH'S  WORK  IN  REBUILDING  THE  WALLS  OF 
JERUSALEM 

Now  in  the  month  of  Chislev  [November-December,  446 
B.C.],  I  was  in  Shushan  the  royal  palace,  when  Hanani, 
one  of  my  kinsmen  came,  together  with  certain  men  from 
Judah,  and  I  asked  them  concerning  the  Jews  who  had 
escaped,  who  were  left  from  the  captivity,  and  concerning 
Jerusalem.  And  they  said  to  me,  The  survivors  who  are 
left  from  the  captivity  there  in  the  provinces  are  in  great 
misfortune  and  reproach,  and  the  wall  of  Jerusalem  is 
broken  down  and  its  gates  have  been  destroyed  by  fire. 

Now  when  I  heard  these  statements  I  sat  down  and  wept 
and  mourned  certain  days ;  and  I  fasted  and  made  supplica- 
tion before  the  God  of  heaven,  and  I  said,  *I  beseech  thee, 
O  Jehovah,  the  God  of  heaven,  the  great  and  terrible  God, 
who  keepeth  the  covenant  and  showeth  kindness  to  them 
who  love  and  keep  his  commands;  let  thine  ears  now  be 
attentive  and  thine  eyes  open,  to  hear  the  supplication  of 
thy  servant,  which  I  am  now  making  before  thee,  day  and 
night,  for  the  Israelites  thy  servants,  while  I  confess  the 
sins  of  the  Israelites,  which  we  have  sinned  against  thee, 
as  I  also  and  my  father's  house  have  sinned.  We  have 
dealt  very  wickedly  against  thee,  and  have  not  kept  the 
commandments,  nor  the  statutes,  nor  the  ordinances,  which 
thou  didst  command  thy  servant  Moses.  Remember,  I  be- 
seech thee,  the  word  which  thou  didst  command  thy  servant 
Moses,  saying,  "If  ye  trespass  I  will  scatter  you  abroad 
among  the  peoples;  but  if  ye  return  to  me,  and  keep  my 
commands  and  do  them,  then,  though  your  outcasts  were 
at  the  ends  of  the  earth,  yet  will  I  gather  them  thence 
and  will  bring  them  to  the  place  that  I  have  chosen,  there 
to  cause  my  name  to  dwell."     Now  these  are  thy  servants 

104 


NEHEMIAirS  WORK 

and  thy  people,  whom  thou  hast  redeemed  by  thy  great 
power  and  by  thy  strong  hand.  0  Lord,  I  beseech  thee, 
let  thine  ear  be  attentive  to  the  supplication  of  thy  servant, 
and  to  the  supplications  of  thy  servants,  who  delight  to 
fear  thy  name;  and  give  success  to  thy  servant  this  day, 
and  grant  him  mercy  in  the  sight  of  this  man. 

Now  I  was  cupbearer  to  the  king.  And  it  came  to  pass  3.  His 
in  the  month  of  Nisan,  in  the  twentieth  year  of  Artaxerxes  and"the 
the  king,  when  I  had  charge  of  the  wine,  that  I  took  up  the  '''"g's 
wine  and  gave  it  to  the  king,  and  I  had  not  beforetime  been  sponse 
sad.  And  the  king  said  to  me,  'Why  is  your  countenance  ^'j"" 
sad,  since  you  are  not  sick?  This  is  nothing  else  but  sorrow 
of  heart.'  Then  I  was  greatly  afraid,  and  I  said  to  the  king, 
*  Let  the  king  live  forever :  why  should  not  my  countenance 
be  sad,  when  the  city,  the  place  of  my  fathers'  sepulchres, 
lies  in  ruins,  and  its  gates  have  been  destroyed  by  fire?' 
And  then  the  king  said  to  me,  'For  what  do  you  make  re- 
quest? '  So  I  prayed  to  the  God  of  heaven.  And  I  said  to 
the  king,  'If  it  please  the  king,  and  if  your  servant  has 
found  favor  in  your  sight,  that  you  would  send  me  to  Judah, 
to  the  city  of  my  fathers'  sepulchres,  that  I  may  rebuild  it.* 
And  the  king  said  to  me  (and  the  queen  was  also  sitting  by 
him),  'For  how  long  will  your  journey  be?  And  when  will 
you  return?'  Then  it  pleased  the  king  to  send  me;  for  I 
set  him  a  time.  Moreover  I  said  to  the  king,  'If  it  please 
the  king,  let  official  letters  be  given  me  to  the  governors  of 
the  province  beyond  the  River,  that  they  may  let  me  pass 
through  until  I  come  to  Judah,  and  a  letter  to  Asaph  the 
keeper  of  the  king's  park,  that  he  may  give  me  the  timber 
to  make  beams  for  the  gates  of  the  castle,  which  belongs  to 
the  temple,  and  for  the  wall  of  the  city,  and  for  the  house 
that  I  shall  enter.  And  the  king  granted  me  this,  accord- 
ing to  the  hand  of  my  God  which  kindly  cared  for  me. 

Then  I  came  to  the  governors  of  the  province  beyond  the  4.  His 
River,  and  gave  them  the  king's  official  letters.     Now  the  f,[jem. 
king  had  sent  with  me  military  officers  and  horsemen.  ^^^'^'^J^. 
And  when  Sanballat,  the  Horonite,  and  Tobiah,  the  Ammon-  spec-" 
ite  slave,  heard  of  it,  it  troubled   them  exceedingly,  that  con"d? 
one  had  come  to  seek  the  welfare  of  the  Israelites.     So  I  tw^j" 
came  to  Jerusalem  and  was  there  three  days.     And  I  arose 
in  the  night,  together  with  a  few  of  my  followers,  and  I  told 

105 


NEHEMIAH'S  WORK 

no  man  what  my  God  had  put  into  my  heart  to  do  for  Jeru- 
salem, neither  was  there  any  beast  with  me,  except  the 
beast  upon  which  I  rode.  And  I  went  out  by  night  through 
the  Valley  Gate,  toward  the  Dragon's  Well  and  to  the 
Dung  Gate,  and  investigated  carefully  the  walls  of  Jerusa- 
lem, which  were  broken  down,  and  where  its  gates  had  been 
destroyed  by  fire.  Then  I  went  on  to  the  Fountain  Gate 
and  to  the  King's  Pool,  but  there  was  no  place  for  the  beast 
that  was  under  me  to  pass.  Then  I  went  up  in  the  night 
by  the  Brook  Kidron  and  investigated  carefully  the  wall; 
then  I  turned  back  and  entered  by  the  Valley  Gate,  and  so 
returned.  And  the  rulers  did  not  know  where  I  went  or 
what  I  did,  neither  had  I  as  yet  told  it  to  the  Jews  nor  to  the 
priests  nor  to  the  nobles  nor  to  the  rulers  nor  to  the  Te?.t 
who  did  the  work. 
Re-  Then  I  said  to  them,  'You  see  the  bad  condition  in  which 
we  are,  how  Jerusalem  lies  in  ruins  and  its  gates  are  de- 
stroyed by  fire.  Come  and  let  us  rebuild  the  wall  of  Jeru- 
salem, that  we  be  no  more  an  object  of  reproach.'  And  I 
told  them  of  the  hand  of  my  God,  v/hich  had  kindly  cared 
for  me,  as  also  of  the  king's  words  that  he  had  spoken  to 
me.  And  they  said,  'Let  us  rise  up  and  build.'  So  they 
strengthened  their  hands  for  the  good  work.  But  when 
Sanballat,  the  Horonite,  and  Tobiah,  the  Ammonite  slave, 
and  Geshem  the  Arabian  heard  it,  they  jeered  at  us  and 
despised  us,  and  said,  'What  is  this  thing  that  you  are 
doing?  Will  you  rebel  against  the  king? '  Then  I  answered 
and  said  to  them,  'The  God  of  heaven,  he  will  give  us 
success,  for  we  his  servants  will  proceed  to  build;  but  you 
shall  have  no  portion  nor  right  nor  memorial  in  Jerusalem.' 

Then  Eliashib  the  high  priest  rose  up  with  his  kinsmen 
the  priests  and  built  the  Sheep  Gate;  they  laid  its  beams 
and  set  up  the  doors,  even  to  the  Tower  of  the  Hundred, 
and  to  the  Tower  of  Hananel.  And  next  to  him  the  men 
of  Jericho  built.  And  next  to  them  Zaccur  the  son  of 
Imri  built. 

And  the  Fish  Gate  the  sons  of  Hassenaah  built;  they 
laid  its  beams,  and  set  up  its  doors,  its  bolts,  and  its  bars. 
And  next  to  them  Meremoth  and  Meshullam  and  Zadok 
and  the  Tekoites  repaired  the  wall ;  but  their  nobles  did  not 
bend  their  necks  in  the  service  of  their  lord. 

106 


H?^* 


THE  JEBISALBM 
OF  NEHEMIAH. 


*-  Modern  JeriiMilpm. 

SCAte  OF   FEET. 


NEHEMIAH'S  WORK 

And  the  Old  Gate  Joida  repaired;  they  laid  its  beams,  s.WeAt. 
and  set  up  its  doors,  its  bolts,  and  its  bars.  And  next  to  "n^*" 
them  Melatiah  the  Gibeonite  and  Jadon  the  Meronothite, 
the  men  of  Gibeon  and  of  Mizpah,  which  belongs  to  the 
jurisdiction  of  the  governor  of  the  province  beyond  the 
River,  repaired.  Next  to  him  Uzziel,  one  of  the  goldsmiths, 
repaired.  And  next  to  him  Hananiah,  one  of  those  who 
prepare  sweet  ointments,  repaired.  And  they  fortified  Jeru- 
salem even  to  the  broad  wall.  And  next  to  them  Rephaiah, 
the  ruler  of  half  the  district  of  Jerusalem,  repaired.  And 
next  to  them  Jedaiah  repaired  opposite  his  house.  And  next 
to  him  Hattush  and  Malchijah  and  Hasshub  repaired  an- 
other section,  even  to  the  Tower  of  the  Furnaces.  And  next 
to  him  Shallum,  the  ruler  of  half  the  district  of  Jerusalem, 
together  with  its  dependencies,  repaired. 

The  Valley  Gate  Hanun  and  the  inhabitants  of  Zanoah  o. 
repaired;    they  built  it,  and  set  up  its  doors,  its  bolts,  and  cm^*^* 
its  bars,  and  also  built  a  thousand  cubits  of  the  wall  to  ^^^'1' 
the  Dung  Gate.     And  the  Dung  Gate  Malchijah,  the  ruler  Kaies 
of  the  district  of  Beth-haccherem,  together  with  his  sons,   ^  "  '^ 
repaired. 

And  the  Fountain  Gate  Shallun,  the  ruler  of  the  district  lo. 
of  Mizpah,  repaired ;  and  he  built  it,  and  covered  it,  and  set  tZ^i^n-. 
up  its  doors,  its  bolts,  and  its  bars,  and  he  also  built  the  ^j^^' 
wall  of  the  Pool  of  Siloam  by  the  King's  Garden,  even  to  gate* 
the  stairs  that  go  down  from  the  city  of  David.     After  him  ^"   ^ 
Nehemiah,  the  ruler  of  half  the  district  of  Bethzur,  repaired 
to  the  place  opposite  the  Sepulchres  of  David,  even  to  the 
pool  that  was  made  and  to  the  House  of  the  Warriors. 
After  him  Rehum  the  son  of  Bani  repaired.     Next  to  him 
Hashabiah,  the  ruler  of  half  the  district  of  Keilah,  repaired 
for  his  district.     After  him  their  kinsmen  Bennui,  the  ruler 
of  half  the  district  of  Keilah,  repaired.     And  next  to  him 
Ezer,  the  ruler  of  Mizpah,  repaired  another  section  opposite 
the  ascent  to  the  armory  at  the  bend  in  the  wall.     After 
him  Baruch  repaired  from  the  bend  in  the  wall  to  the  door 
of  the  house  of  Eliashib  the  high  priest.     After  him  Mere- 
moth  repaired  another  section,  from  the  entrance  to  the 
house  of  Eliashib  even  to  the  end  of  the  house  of  Eliashib. 
And  after  him  the  priests,  the  men  of  the  Plain  of  the 

107 


NEHEMIAH'S  WORK 

Jordan,  repaired.  After  them  Benjamin  and  Hasshub  re- 
paired opposite  their  house.  After  them  Azariah  repaired 
beside  his  own  house.  After  him  Binnui  repaired  another 
section,  from  the  house  of  Azariah  to  the  bend  in  the  wall 
and  to  the  corner.  After  him  Palal  repaired  opposite  the 
bend  and  the  upper  tower  that  stands  out  from  the  royal 
palace  of  the  king,  which  is  toward  the  court  of  the  guard. 
After  him  Pedaiah  repaired,  to  the  place  opposite  the  Water 
Gate  toward  the  east  and  the  tower  that  stands  out.  After 
him  the  Tekoites  repaired  another  section,  opposite  the  great 
tower  that  stands  out  and  to  the  wall  of  Ophel.  And  the 
temple  servants  dwelt  in  Ophel. 

Above  the  Horse  Gate  the  priests  repaired,  each  one  op- 
posite his  own  house.  After  them  Zadok  the  son  of  Immer 
repaired  opposite  his  own  house.  After  him  Shemaiah  the 
son  of  Shechaniah,  the  keeper  of  the  East  Gate,  repaired. 
After  him  Hananiah  the  son  of  Shelemiah  and  Hanum  the 
sixth  son  of  Zalaph  repaired  another  section.  After  him 
Meshullam  the  son  of  Berschiah  repaired  opposite  his 
chamber.  After  him  Malchijah,  one  of  the  goldsmiths,  re- 
paired as  far  as  the  house  of  the  temple  servants  and  of  the 
merchants,  opposite  the  Gate  of  the  Watch  Tower  and  to 
the  ascent  of  the  corner.  And  between  the  ascent  of  the 
corner  and  the  Sheep  Gate  the  goldsmiths  and  the  merchants 
repaired. 

Now  when  Sanballat  heard  that  we  were  rebuilding  the 
wall,  his  anger  was  aroused  and  he  was  very  indignant, 
and  mocked  the  Jews.  And  he  spoke  before  his  kinsmen 
and  the  army  of  Samaria  and  said,  'What  are  these  feeble 
Jews  doing?  Will  they  leave  it  to  God?  Will  they  sacri- 
fice? Will  they  complete  it  in  a  day?  Will  they  revive 
the  stones  out  of  the  heaps  of  rubbish,  although  they  are 
burned?  Now  Tobiah  the  Ammonite  was  with  him,  and 
he  said,  '  Even  that  which  they  are  building,  if  a  fox  should 
go  up  on  it,  he  would  break  down  their  stone  wall ! '  Hear, 
O  our  God — for  we  are  despised — and  turn  back  their  re- 
proach upon  their  own  head  and  give  them  up  as  an  object 
of  spoil  in  a  land  of  captivity,  and  cover  not  their  iniquity 
and  let  not  their  sin  be  blotted  out  from  thy  sight,  for  they 
have  provoked  thee  to  anger  before  the  builders. 

108 


NEHEMIAH'S  WORK 

So  we  built  the  wall ;  and  all  the  wall  was  joined  together  i3. 
to  half  its  height,  for  the  people  were  eager  to  work.     But  Jiotl'to 
when   Sanballat   and   Tobiah   and   the   Arabians   and   the  ^|^'^p 
Ammonites  and  the  Ashdodites,  heard  that  the  restoration  wo^k 
of  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  was  progressing,  so  that  the  ^"^ 
breaches  began  to  be  stopped,  they  were  very  angry.     And 
they  all  conspired  together  to  come  and  fight  against  Jeru- 
salem and  to  produce  a  panic  therein. 

But  we  made  supplication  to  our  God,  and  set  a  watch  i4, 
as  a  protection  against  them  day  and  night.     Then  the  ofX 
Judean   community   said,    'The   strength    of   the    burden-  ^^^'If^'^ 
bearers  is  broken,  for  there  is  much  rubbish;    so  that  we  Nehc- 
shall  not  be  able  to  rebuild  the  wall.     And  our  adversaries  ^\fnoi 
have  said,  "  They  shall  neither  know  nor  see,  until  we  come  y^",!;^ 
into  their  midst  and  slay  them  and  bring  the  work  to  a 
standstill." '     And  it  came   to  pass  that  when  the  Jews 
who  dwelt  by  them  came,  they  said  to  us  ten  times,  'From 
all  the  places  where  they  dwell  they  will  come  up  against 
us.'     Therefore  I  stationed  in  the  lowest  parts  of  the  space 
behind  the  wall,  in  the  protected  places,  I  set  there  the 
people  by  their  families  with  their  swords,   their  spears, 
and  their  bows.     And  when  I  saw  their  fear,  I  rose  up  and 
said  to  the  nobles  and  to  the  rulers  and  to  the  rest  of  the 
people,  'Be  not  afraid  of  them.     Remember  the  Lord,  who 
is  great  and  terrible,  and  fight  for  your  kinsmen,  your  sons 
and  your  daughters,  your  wives  and  your  homes.' 

And  when  our  enemies  heard  that  their  plan  was  known  is. 
to  us  and  God  had  brought  it  to  nought,  we  all  of  us  returned  prog-*^ 
to  the  wall,  each  to  his  own  work.     And  from  that  time  on,  [^^^  of 
while  half  of  my  ser/ants  were  engaged  in  the  work,  half  of  ^ork 
them  held  the  lances,  the  shields,  the  bows,  and  the  coats  method 
of  mail ;  and  the  rulers  stood  behind  all  the  house  of  Judah.  ^f^^^^ 
Those  who  built  the  wall  and  those  who  bore  burdens  were   c^".^ 
also  armed,   each  with  one  of  his  hands  engaged  in  the 
work,  and  with  the  other  was  ready  to  grasp  his  spear; 
and  each  of  the  builders  had  his  sword  girded  by  his  side, 
and  so  builded.     And  he  who  sounded  the  trumpet  was  by 
me.     And  I  said  to  the  nobles  and  to  the  rulers  and  to  the 
rest  of  the  people,  'The  work  is  great  and  extensive,  and 
we  are  separated  upon  the  wall  far  from  each  other.     In 

109 


NEHEMIAH'S  WORK 

whatever  place  you  hear  the  sound  of  the  trumpet,  gather 
there  to  us;  our  God  will  fight  for  us.'  So  we  were  active 
in  the  work,  while  half  of  them  held  the  lances  from  the 
gray  of  morning  until  the  stars  came  out.  Also  I  said  at 
that  time  to  the  people,  Let  each  man  with  his  servant 
lodge  in  Jerusalem,  that  they  may  be  a  guard  to  us  by  night 
and  may  labor  by  day.  So  neither  I,  nor  my  kinsmen,  nor 
my  servants,  nor  the  men  of  the  guard  who  accompanied 
me,  not  one  of  us  took  off  our  clothes,  each  had  his  spear 
in  his  hand. 

Now  when  it  was  reported  to  Sanballat  and  to  Tobiah 
and  to  Geshem  the  Arabian  and  to  the  rest  of  our  enemies, 
that  I  had  rebuilt  the  wall  and  that  there  was  no  breach 
left  in  it— though  even  to  that  time  I  had  not  set  up  the 
doors  in  the  gates — Sanballat  and  Geshem  sent  to  me, 
saying,  'Come,  let  us  meet  together  in  one  of  the  villages 
on  the  plain  of  Ono.'  But  they  planned  to  do  me  injury. 
So  I  sent  messengers  to  them,  saying,  'I  am  doing  a  great 
work,  so  that  I  cannot  come  down;  why  should  the  work 
cease,  while  I  leave  it  and  come  down  to  you?'  And  they 
sent  to  me  in  this  way  four  times,  and  I  gave  them  the  same 
answer.  Then  Sanballat  sent  his  servant  to  me  in  the 
same  way  the  fifth  time  with  an  open  letter  in  his  hand,  in 
which  was  written,  'It  is  reported  among  the  nations,  and 
Gashmu  confirms  it,  that  you  and  the  Jews  plan  to  rebel, 
and  that  this  is  the  reason  you  are  building  the  wall,  and 
that  you  would  be  their  king,  and  that  you  also  have  ap- 
pointed prophets  to  preach  of  you  at  Jerusalem,  saying, 
"There  is  a  king  in  Judah."  Aiid  now  it  will  be  reported 
to  the  king  to  this  effect.  Come  now,  therefore,  and  let  us 
take  counsel  together.'  Then  I  sent  to  him,  saying,  *No 
such  things  have  been  done  as  you  say,  but  you  have  de- 
vised them  in  your  own  mind.'  For  they  all  would  have 
made  us  afraid,  thinking,  'Their  hands  shall  be  weakened 
i^-g  from  the  work,  that  it  may  not  be  done.'  But  now,  0  God, 
maiahs  strengthen  thou  my  hands. 

tempt  And  when  I  went  to  the  house  of  Shemaiah  the  son  of 
fri  ht-  Delaiah,  the  son  of  Mehetabel,  who  was  shut  up  at  home, 
en  Ne-  he  Said,  '  Let  us  meet  together  in  the  house  of  God,  within 
(IS^If  **  the  temple,  and  let  us  shut  the  doors  of  the  temple :  for  they 

110 


Cnm- 
pletioo 
of  the 
walls 


NEHEMIAH'S  WORK 

are  coming  to  slay  you  in  the  night ;  yes,  in  the  night  they 
are  coming  to  slay  you  I '  And  I  said,  '  Should  such  a  man 
as  I  flee?  And  how  could  anyone  like  me  [a  layman]  enter 
the  chief  room  of  the  temple  and  still  live?  I  will  not  enter.' 
Then  I  perceived  and  it  was  clear  that  God  had  not  sent 
him ;  but  he  pronounced  this  prophecy  against  me,  because 
Tobiah  and  Sanballat  had  hired  him,  that  I  should  be 
alarmed  and  act  accordingly  and  sin;  and  it  v/ould  have 
given  them  occasion  for  an  evil  report,  that  they  might 
reproach  me.  Remember,  0  my  God,  Tobiah  and  Sanballat 
according  to  these  their  acts,  and  also  the  prophetess  Noa- 
diah  and  the  rest  of  the  prophets  who  would  have  made  me 
afraid. 

So  the  wall  was  finished  in  the  twenty-fifth  day  of  the  is. 
month  Elul,  in  fifty-two  days.     And  when  all  our  enemies 
heard,  all  the  surrounding  nations  feared  and  fell  in  their 
own  esteem,  for  they  perceived  that  this  work  had  been  o'""') 
done  by  our  God. 

Moreover  in  those  days  the  nobles  of  Judah  sent  many  19. 
letters  to  Tobiah,  and  those  of  Tobiah  came  to  them.     For  ^^";. 
many  in  Judah  had  taken  oath  to  him,  because  he  was  the  ^jes  of 
son-in-law  of  Shechaniah  the  son  of  Arah  and  his  son  friends 
Jehohanan  had  taken  the  daughter  of  Meshullam,  the  son  biah° 
of  Berechiah,  as  wife.     Also  they  praised  his  good  deeds  ("") 
before  me  and  reported  my  words  to  him.     Then  Tobiah 
sent  letters  to  make  me  afraid. 

Now  when  the  wall  had  been  built  and  I  had  set  up  the  20.  The 
doors,  and  the  porters  and  the  singers  and  the  Levites  had 
been  appointed,  I  placed  my  brother  Hanani  and  Hananiah 
the  commander  of  the  castle  in  charge  of  Jerusalem;  for  Xj'^ 
he  was  a  faithful  man,  and  more  God-fearing  than  many. 
And  I  said  to  them,  'Let  not  the  gates  of  Jerusalem  be  opened 
until  the  stm  is  hot ;  and  while  watchmen  are  still  on  guard, 
let  them  shut  the  doors  and  bar  them.  Also  appoint  watches 
consisting  of  the  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem,  every  one  in 
his  watch  and  each  opposite  his  own  house.' 

Now  the  city  was  wide  and  large;    but  there  were  few  21.^^^^ 
people  in  it,  and  the  households  were  not  large.     Therefore 
my  God  put  it  into  my  mind  to  gather  together  the  nobles 
and  the  rulers  and  the  people. 

Ill 


guard- 
ing of 
the  city 
;ates 


niare 
citizens 


NEHEMIAH'S  WORK 

Then  I  had  the  rulers  of  Judah  take  their  position  upon 
the  wall,  and  I  appointed  two  great  companies  that  gave 
thanks,  and  the  first  went  to  the  right  hand  upon  the  wall 
toward  the  Dung  Gate.  And  behind  them  went  Hoshaiah 
and  half  of  the  nobles  of  Judah.  And  by  the  Fountain 
Gate,  they  went  straight  up  the  stairs  of  the  city  of  David, 
at  the  ascent  of  the  wall,  above  the  house  of  David,  even  to 
the  Water  Gate  on  the  east.  And  the  other  company  of 
those  who  gave  thanks  went  to  the  left,  and  I  after  them, 
with  the  half  of  the  nobles  of  the  people,  upon  the  wall, 
above  the  Tower  of  the  Furnaces,  even  to  the  broad  wall, 
and  above  the  Gate  of  Ephraim  and  by  the  Old  Gate  and  by 
the  Fish  Gate  and  the  Tower  of  Hananel  and  the  Tower  of 
the  Hundred,  even  to  the  Sheep  Gate;  and  they  stood  in 
the  Gate  of  the  Guard.  So  the  two  companies  of  those  who 
gave  thanks  in  the  house  of  God  took  their  position,  and  I, 
and  the  half  of  the  rulers  with  me. 

I.  Nehemiah's  Memoirs.  Fortunately  the  author  of  the  books  of 
Ezra  and  Nehemiah  has  quoted  at  length  in  the  opening  chapters  of 
Nehemiah  from  the  personal  memoirs  of  the  noble  patriot  through 
whose  activity  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  were  restored.  They  are  the  best 
historical  records  in  the  Old  Testament  and  they  shed  clear,  contempo- 
rary light  upon  this  most  important  period  in  the  evolution  of  Judaism, 
The  narrative  is  straightforward  and  vivid.  It  lights  up  the  otherwise 
dark  period  that  precedes  Nehemiah  and  enables  the  historian  to  bridge 
with  assurance  the  century  that  intervened  before  the  apocryphal  book 
of  I  Maccabees  throws  its  light  upon  the  course  of  Israel's  troubled 
history.  The  detailed  description  of  the  rebuilding  of  the  walls  in 
Nehemiah  3  is  probably  from  the  Chronicler,  but  it  reveals  an  inti- 
mate acquaintance  with  the  topography  and  the  later  history  of  Judah's 
capital. 

II.  Nehemiah's  Response  to  the  Call  to  Service.  The  pres- 
ence of  a  deputation  from  Jerusalem  (including  Nehemiah's  kinsman 
Hanani)  in  the  distant  Persian  capital  of  Susa  was  not  a  mere  accident. 
Nehemah's  response  to  their  appeal  and  the  epoch-making  movement 
which  he  inaugurated  reveal  the  presence  of  an  impelling  force.  Prob- 
ably back  of  all  this  movement  was  the  work  of  the  great  prophet  who 
speaks  in  Isaiah  40-66.  In  all  that  Nehemiah  did  that  influence  may 
be  seen.     In  the  fervent  and  patriotic  prayer  that  he  uttered  on  learn- 

112 


NEHEMIAH'S  RESPONSE 

ing  of  conditions  in  Jerusalem  he  used  the  term  servant  or  servants  of 
Jehovah  eight  times  in  six  short  verses.  It  also  echoes  the  phraseology 
and  thought  of  the  II  Isaiah. 

The  king  under  whom  Nehemiah  served  was  evidently  Artaxerxes  T. 
In  Nehemiah  12^"'  "  the  Chronicler  states  that  Eliashib,  the  high  priest 
in  the  days  of  Nehemiah,  was  the  grandson  of  Joshua,  who  shared  in 
the  rebuilding  of  the  temple  in  520  B.C.  Eliashib  was  also  the  great- 
grandfather of  Jaddua,  who  was  high  priest  in  Jerusalem  in  332  B.C., 
when  Alexander  conquered  Palestine.  References  in  the  recently  dis- 
covered Elephantine  letters,  as  well  as  in  the  history  of  Josephus,  con- 
firm the  conclusion  that  Nehemiah  set  out  upon  his  ex-pedition  in  the 
spring  of  445  B.C.  Like  all  those  who  ministered  personally  to  the  Per- 
sian kings,  he  was  probably  a  eunuch  and  still  a  young  man.  The  true 
piety  which  is  revealed  in  his  prayer,  the  courage  shown  by  his  daring 
to  appear  with  sad  face  in  the  presence  of  the  absolute  tyrant  who  ruled 
the  Eastern  world,  and  his  tact  in  winning  the  king's  consent  to  his  de- 
parture indicate  that  he  was  a  man  of  rare  energy  and  ability.  Artax- 
erxes I  was  famous  for  his  susceptibility  to  the  influence  of  court  favorites. 
The  queen  referred  to  in  1^  was  probably  the  queen-mother  Amestris, 
who  exercised  commanding  authority  in  the  Persian  court.  Without 
the  royal  consent  and  the  resources  and  authority  granted  him,  Nehe- 
miah could  hardly  have  accomplished  the  large  task  which  he  under- 
took. The  arduous  journey  of  fifteen  hundred  miles  over  mountains 
and  barren  deserts  was  enough  to  daunt  a  man  reared  in  the  luxury  of 
an  Oriental  court,  but  Nehemiah  was  inspired  by  an  ideal  of  service 
which  recognized  no  obstacles. 

III.  Obstacles  that  Confronted  Him.  The  high-priestly  rulers  do 
not  appear  to  have  welcomed  Nehemiah  with  enthusiasm.  Some  of 
them,  at  least,  later  sought  to  undermine  his  work.  It  is  not  difficult  to 
infer  the  reason  for  their  apathy.  Intrenched  wealth  and  authority  are 
usually  conservative,  especially  if  conscious  that  their  position  is  easily 
assailable.  As  the  sequel  proved,  these  leaders  of  the  community  were 
simply  intent  upon  self-aggrandizement,  even  at  the  expense  of  the  de- 
pendent members  of  the  community.  A  revolutionizing  work  like  that 
proposed  by  Nehemiah  was  certain  to  affect  their  vested  interests  and 
to  reveal  their  cruel  selfishness.  Certain  of  their  families  had  also  inter- 
married with  neighboring  chieftains;  and  they  were  quite  content  with 
the  existing  conditions.  A  second  obstacle  was  the  opposition  of  the 
hostile  peoples  who  surrounded  the  little  Judean  community.  On  the 
east  the  Ammonites  had  apparently  pressed  in  and  occupied  the  ancient 

113 


NEHEMIAH'S  WORK 

Hebrew  territory  as  far  as  the  Jordan.  Tobiah,  the  Ammonite,  who 
fio-ures  prominently  in  Nehemiah's  narrative,  was  probably  one  of  their 
local  chiefs.  Gashmu,  the  Arabian,  represented  the  half-civilized  Bed- 
ouin tribes  that  had  invaded  the  territory  of  Judea  from  the  south  and 
east  during  the  pei'iod  of  weakness  following  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem. 
Possibly  he  belonged  to  the  Edomitcs  who  then  held  Hebron  and  all  of 
the  southern  part  of  Judea.  Nehemiah  also  refers  to  the  descendents 
of  Israel's  ancient  foes,  the  Philistines,  living  in  the  city  of  Ashdod.  On 
the  north  the  superior  resources  of  Samaria  had  asserted  themselves, 
and  these  survivors  of  the  ancient  Israelites  who  lived  among  the  hills 
of  Ephraim  had  grown  into  a  powerful  nation  that  overshadowed  the 
struggling  Judean  community.  These  northerners,  however,  still  wor- 
shipped at  Jerusalem  and  were  closely  allied  with  the  Jews.  At  their 
head  was  Sanballat,  the  Horonite,  who  probably  came  from  Bethhoron, 
in  southwestern  Samaria.  Each  of  these  peoples  inherited  the  feeling 
of  hostility  with  which  their  fathers  had  regarded  the  people  of  Judah, 
and  looked  with  suspicion  upon  any  movement  to  re-establish  Jerusalem's 
former  strength  and  prestige.  Furthermore,  the  men  of  the  Judean  com- 
munity itself  lacked  courage  and  training.  With  inefRcient  helpers  and 
with  opponents  within  and  without  the  commimity,  Nehemiah's  task 
seemed  wellnigh  impossible.  That  he  succeeded  in  the  face  of  all 
these  obstacles  in  rebuilding  the  walls  in  the  incredibly  short  period  of 
fifty-two  days  is  only  explained  by  his  superlative  skill,  devotion,  and 
energy. 

IV.  Nehemiah's  Plan  of  Work.  Fortunately  Nehemiah  possessed 
resources  as  well  as  tact.  He  quickly  disarmed  the  opposition  and  won 
at  least  the  nominal  support  of  the  leaders  by  entertaining  one  hundred 
and  fifty  of  them  as  his  guests.  Thus  he  was  able  to  place  them  under 
personal  obligation  to  him,  to  keep  them  under  close  surveillance,  and 
to  command  their  co-operation.  In  the  second  place  he  appealed  to 
them  and  to  the  people  by  means  of  eloquent  addresses  which  reveal 
his  enthusiasm  and  devotion.  Furthermore,  he  did  not  depend  upon  the 
reports  of  others,  but  personally  studied  the  situation.  His  secret  mid- 
night ride  down  through  the  Valley  Gate  to  the  southwest  of  Jerusalem 
and  thence  eastward  along  the  Hinnom  Valley  to  the  point  where  it  joins 
the  Kidron,  and  from  there  up  the  valley,  gave  him  most  accurate  in- 
formation regarding  conditions.  In  most  cases  the  ancient  foundations 
of  the  city  walls  still  remained.  The  first  need  was  to  remove  the  rub- 
bish and  where  stones  had  fallen  to  replace  them.  The  towers  required 
certain  timbers,  which  were  cut  probably  from  the  royal  domains  to  the 

114 


NEHEMIAH'S  PLAN  OF  WORK 

south  of  the  city.  Nehemiah  enlisted  all  members  of  the  community 
both  within  and  without  Jerusalem.  He  organized  them  under  their 
local  leaders  and  set  them  to  the  task  in  which  each  was  most  interested. 
Thus  the  heads  of  the  different  villages,  the  elders  of  the  leading  fam- 
ilies, the  guilds  of  workmen,  and  even  the  priests,  were  all  put  to  work 
and  inspired  by  the  spirit  of  natural  rivalry  as  well  as  common  loyalty. 
Nehemiah  himself  with  his  immediate  followers  directed  the  work,  and 
instituted  a  strict  military  rule  which  secured  both  efficiency  and  pro- 
tection. 

V.  The  Restored  Walls.  In  the  light  of  recent  excavations  at 
Jerusalem  it  is  possible  to  follow  Nehemiah *s  work  in  detail.  In  the 
destruction  of  the  walls  by  the  Chaldeans  the  city  had  suffered  most  on 
the  north  where  it  was  nearly  level  and  protected  by  no  descending 
valleys.  Just  north  of  the  temple  area  a  little  valley  ran  up  from  the 
Kidron,  leaving  but  a  narrow  neck  of  land  connected  directly  with  the 
plateau  on  the  north.  Here  two  great  towers  were  restored  that  prob- 
ably occupied  the  site  of  the  later  Roman  tower  of  Antonia.  Thence 
the  wall  ran  westward  across  the  upper  Tyropoean  Valley,  which  was 
here  comparatively  level.  Numerous  bands  of  workmen  were  assigned 
to  this  part  of  the  work.  The  gate  of  the  old  wall  was  probably  identical 
with  the  corner  gate  at  the  northwestern  end  of  the  city.  The  Ephraim 
Gate  a  little  further  to  the  southwest  apparently  corresponded  to  the 
modern  Joppa  Gate.  From  this  point  a  broad  wall  ran  to  the  western 
side  of  the  city  where  the  hill  descended  rapidly  into  the  Valley  of 
Hinnom,  making  its  defence  easy.  At  the  southwestern  end  of  the  city 
stood  the  Tower  of  the  Furnaces  and  the  Valley  Gate  of  which  the 
foundations  have  recently  been  laid  bare.  The  gate  itself  was  narrow, 
being  only  eight  feet  wide,  but  the  wall  was  here  nine  feet  in  thickness. 
The  eighteen  hundred  or  two  thousand  feet  of  wall  along  the  Valley 
of  Hinnom  was  evidently  practically  intact,  for  its  repair  was  intrusted 
to  but  one  group  of  workmen.  Across  the  southern  end  of  the  Tyropoean 
Valley  the  ground  was  almost  level,  so  that  a  strong  wall  was  required. 
Excavations  have  shown  that  it  was  twenty  feet  thick  at  its  base  and 
supported  by  six  strong  buttresses.  The  Fountain  Gate,  through  which 
ran  the  main  street  down  the  Tyropoean  Valley  out  into  the  valley  of  the 
Kidron,  was  the  chief  southern  gate  of  the  city.  It  was  nine  feet  wide 
and  defended  by  a  tower  about  forty-five  feet  square.  Portions  of  this 
ancient  thoroughfare,  with  its  stones,  worn  smooth  by  the  feet  of  the  in- 
habitants of  the  ancient  city,  have  here  been  uncovered.  Just  above  the 
Pool  of  Siloam,  which  was  within  the  city  walls,  was  the  King's  Garden. 

115 


NEHEMIAH'S  WORK 

Thence  the  Hill  of  Ophel  ascended  rapidly  making  necessary  the  stairs 
mentioned  in  Nehemiah  3.  The  wall  on  the  southeast  was  readily  re- 
paired, for  it  ran  along  the  sloping  western  side  of  the  Kidron  Valley. 
The  Water  Gate  probably  led  down  to  the  Virgin's  Fount,  and  the 
Horse  Gate  further  to  the  north  opened  directly  from  the  Kidron  Valley 
to  the  public  buildings  that  occupied  the  site  of  Solomon's  palace  im- 
mediately to  the  south  of  the  temple.  It  is  the  space  to-day  occupied 
by  the  southern  end  of  the  temple  area,  which  was  thus  extended  in  the 
days  of  Herod.  Opposite  the  northeastern  end  of  the  temple  area  the 
wall  curved  westward  until  it  reached  the  great  towers  that  guarded  the 
northern  end  of  the  city. 

VI.  Completion  and  Dedication  of  the  Walls.  Under  the  inspi- 
ration of  Nehemiah's  leadership,  and  as  a  result  of  the  constant  fear 
of  attack,  the  building  of  the  walls  proceeded  rapidly  and  without  in- 
terruption. To  the  threats  of  hostile  foes  Nehemiah  paid  little  heed. 
Trained  in  the  Persian  court,  he  saw  at  once  their  murderous  purpose 
when  they  requested  a  conference  in  southwestern  Samaria  on  the  border 
of  the  Plain  of  Ono.  Through  the  treacherous  prophets  in  the  Judean 
community  they  sought  to  play  upon  his  fears  and  to  lead  him  to  com- 
promise himself  by  taking  refuge  in  the  sacred  precincts  of  the  temple, 
but  his  courage,  as  well  as  his  high  respect  for  the  sanctuary,  delivered 
him  from  the  plot.  The  cry  that  he  was  himself  aspiring  to  the  king- 
ship and  that  his  acts  were  treason  against  Persia  did  not  daunt  him, 
and  when,  in  response  to  their  malicious  reports,  the  order  finally  came 
from  the  Persian  king  to  cease  working,  the  walls  were  already  rebuilt'. 

Apparently  Nehemiah's  original  leave  of  absence  was  for  but  a  short 
period.  His  kinsman  Hanani,  who  had  headed  the  original  deputation 
to  Susa,  and  a  certain  Hananiah  were  by  him  placed  in  charge  of  the 
city.  To  protect  it  against  sudden  attack  its  gates  were  closed  at  night 
and  not  opened  until  the  middle  of  the  following  forenoon.  Effective 
measures  were  also  instituted  to  increase  its  population.  ^Mien  the 
work  of  rebuilding  the  walls  was  complete,  Nehemiah  arranged  for  their 
public  dedication.  Starting  from  the  Valley  Gate  on  the  southwestern 
side  of  the  city,  one  half  of  the  nobles  and  the  people  marched  along 
the  southern  and  eastern  wall,  while  Nehemiah  with  the  other  half  of 
the  people  proceeded  along  the  western  and  northern  wall.  Finally 
meeting  on  the  northern  side  of  the  temple  area,  the  two  companies 
blended  their  voices  in  thanksgiving  to  Jehovah  who  at  last  had  made 
it  possible  for  them  to  worship  him  in  his  sanctuary  secure  from  attack. 

Nehemiah  had  reorganized  the  Judean  community,  rebuilt  their  walls, 

116 


COMPLETION  AND  DEDICATION  OF  THE  WALLS 

and  inspired  them  with  a  new  sense  of  self-respect;  thus  he  made  pos- 
sible that  genuine  revival  of  the  Judean  state  that  took  place  during 
the  succeeding  centuries.  He,  like  Ezekiel,  Haggai,  Zechariah,  and  the 
II  Isaiah,  was  indeed  one  of  the  makers  of  Judaism.  Ben  Sira  with 
true  insight  declared  (49"): 

The  memorial  of  Nehemiah  is  great, 

Who  raised  up  for  us  the  walls  that  were  fallen, 

And  set  up  the  gates  and  bars, 

And  raised  up  our  homes  again. 


§CI.     NEHEMIAH'S  SOCIAL   AND   RELIGIOUS  REFORMS 
Thus  saith  Jehovah,  Guard  justice  and  practice  righteous-  i. 

116SS ,  tation 

For  my  deliverance  is  near  at  hand,  and  my  righteousness  1^^^%' 
is  soon  to  be  revealed.  in  right 

Happy  the  man  who  practices,  the  mortal  who  holds  fast  (u."^ 
to  it,  56.. ») 

Keeping  the  sabbath  so  as  not  to  profane  it,  and  keeping 
his  hand  from  evil. 

Let  not  the  foreigner  who  hath  joined  himself  to  Jehovah  say,  2.  Eu- 
*  Jehovah  will  surely  separate  me  from  his  people.'  to  have 

And  let  not  the  eunuch  say,  'Behold  I  am  a  dry  tree.'  |;?||^^g 

For  thus  saith  Jehovah  to  the  eunuchs,  'Those  who  keep  [n"je- 

my  sabbaths,  temple* 

And  choose  that  in  which  I  delight,  and  hold  fast  to  my  ('') 

covenant, 
I  will  give  them  in  my  house  and  walls  a  monument. 
And  a  name  better  than  sons  and  daughters. 
An  everlasting  name  will  I  give  them  which  cannot  be  cut  off. 

And  the  foreigners  who  join  themselves  to  Jehovah  to  min-  3.  To 

ister  to  him,  foreign' 

And  to  love  the  name  of  Jehovah,  to  be  his  servants,  keep  *"* 

Every  one  who  keeps  the  sabbath  so  as  not  to  pollute  it  and  jeho- 

faithfully  abides  by  my  covenant —  coii-^ 

Them  will  I  bring  to. my  holy  mountain  and  make  joyful  in  manda 

my  house  of  prayer; 

117 


NEHEMIAH'S  SOCIAL  AND  RELIGIOUS  REFORMS 

Their  burnt-offerings  and  sacrifices  will  be  accepted  upon 

my  altar; 
For  my  house  shall  be  called  a  house  of  prayer  for  all 

peoples. 
It  is  the  oracle  of  Jehovah,  who  gathereth  the  outcasts  of 

Israel, 
*  I  will  gather  still  others  to  him  in  addition  to  those  already 

gathered.* 

4.  The     0  all  ye  wild  beasts  of  the  field  come  to  devour,  all  ye  wild 
llfl^'^  beasts  of  the  forest! 

greed      My  watchmcu  are  all  blind,  they  know  not  how  to  give 
rulers  heed, 

^"^^       They  are  all  dumb  dogs  which  cannot  bark, 
Dreaming,  lying  down,  loving  to  slumber. 
And  the  dogs  are  greedy,  they  know  not  how  to  be  satis- 
fied, 
They  all  turn  to  their  own  way,  each  for  his  own  profit 

[saying]. 
Come,  I  will  get  wine,  and  we  will  drink  our  fill  of  strong 

drink. 
And  to-morrow  shall  be  as  to-day,  an  exceedingly  great 
day! 

5.  ^  Cry  with  full  throat,  be  not  silent! 
worehip           Like  a  trumpet  lift  up  thy  voice, 

™^[y  Make  known  to  my  people  their  transgression, 

not  life  And  to  the  house  of  Jacob  their  sin. 

^ce^^^  Me  indeed  they  consult  daily, 

(582-4)  ^^  ^Q  know  my  ways  is  their  delight. 

As  a  nation  that  hath  done  righteousness, 
And  hath  not  forsaken  the  law  of  its  God! 
They  ask  me  regarding  righteous  judgments, 
To  draw  near  to  God  is  their  delight! 
*Why  have  we  fasted  and  thou  seest  not. 
Mortified  ourselves  and  thou  dost  not  notice?' 
Behold,  on  your  fast  day  ye  follow  your  own  pleasure, 
And  ye  exact  all  money  lent  on  pledge. 
Behold  ye  fast  for  strife  and  contention, 
And  to  smite  the  poor  with  the  fist. 
118 


NEHEMIAH'S  SOCIAL  AND  RELIGIOUS  REFORIVIS 

Your  fasting  to-day  is  not  such 

As  to  make  your  voice  heard  on  high. 

Can  such  be  the  fast  which  I  choose,  e.je- 


A  day  when  a  man  mortifies  himself? 


hovah 
desires 

To  droop  one's  head  Hke  a  bulrush,  ^otll 

And  to  lie  down  in  sackcloth  and  ashes?  rifice 

Wilt  thou  call  this  a  fast,  ^'"'^ 

And  a  day  acceptable  to  Jehovah? 
Is  not  this  the  fast  that  I  choose: 
To  loose  the  fetters  of  injustice, 
To  untie  the  bands  of  violence, 
To  set  free  those  who  are  crushed, 
To  tear  apart  every  yoke? 

Is  it  not  to  share  thy  bread  with  the  hungry,  7.  The 

And  to  bring  the  wanderers  to  thy  home?  rewards 

When  thou  seest  the  naked,  to  cover  him,  ^^J^y 

And  not  hide  thyself  from  thine  own  flesh? 
Then  shall  thy  light  break  forth  as  the  dawn. 
Thy  restoration  quickly  spring  forth, 
And  thy  righteousness  shall  go  before  thee, 
The  glory  of  Jehovah  shall  be  thy  reward; 
Then  when  thou  callest  Jehovah  will  answer. 
When  thou  criest  out  he  will  say.  Here  am  I. 
If  from  thy  midst  thou  remove  the  yoke, 
The  finger  of  scorn,  and  mischievous  speech. 
And  bestov/  thy  bread  upon  the  hungry. 
And  satisfy  the  soul  that  is  afiiicted; 
Then  shall  thy  light  shine  forth  in  darkness. 
And  thy  gloom  shall  be  as  noonday, 
Jehovah  will  lead  thee  continually. 
And  will  satisfy  thy  soul  in  parched  lands. 
And  thy  strength  will  he  renew. 
Thou  shalt  be  Hke  a  watered  garden. 
As  a  fountain  whose  waters  fail  not. 
Thy  sons  shall  rebuild  the  ancient  ruins. 
Thou  shalt  rear  again  the  foundations  of  olden  days; 
And  men  shall  call  thee,  Repairer  of  Ruins, 
Restorer  of  Ruined  Places  for  Inhabiting. 
119 


NEHEMIAH'S  SOCIAL  AND  RELIGIOUS  REFORMS 

Then  there  was  a  loud  complaint  from  the  common  people 
and  their  wives  against  their  fellow-countrymen  the  Jews. 
For  there  were  those  who  were  saying,  *We  must  give  our 
sons  and  our  daughters  in  pledge  to  secure  grain  that  we 
may  eat  and  live.'  Some  also  there  were  who  were  saying, 
*We  must  mortgage  our  fields  and  our  vineyards  and  our 
houses,  that  we  may  get  grain  because  of  the  dearth.' 
There  were  also  those  who  were  saying,  *We  have  bor- 
rowed money  for  the  king's  tribute.  Yet  now  our  flesh  is 
as  the  flesh  of  our  brothers,  our  children  as  their  children; 
but  now,  we  must  bring  our  sons  and  our  daughters  into 
slavery,  and  some  of  our  daughters  have  already  thus  been 
brought  into  bondage,  neither  is  it  in  our  power  to  help  it, 
for  our  fields  and  our  vineyards  belong  to  the  nobles.' 

Then  I  was  very  angry  when  I  heard  their  complaint  and 
these  statements.  And  I  took  counsel  with  myself,  and 
contended  with  the  nobles  and  rulers,  and  said  to  them, 
'You  exact  usury  each  of  his  brother.'  And  I  held  a  great 
assembly  against  them.  And  I  said  to  them,  *We  our- 
selves have,  according  to  our  ability,  redeemed  our  fellow- 
countrymen  the  Jews,  who  have  been  sold  to  the  heathen; 
and  would  you  yourselves  sell  your  fellow-countrymen,  and 
should  they  sell  themselves  to  us?'  Then  they  were  silent 
and  could  not  find  a  word  to  say.  Therefore  I  said,  'The 
thing  that  you  are  doing  is  not  good.  Ought  you  not  to 
walk  in  the  fear  of  our  God,  because  of  the  reproach  of  the 
heathen  our  enemies?  For  I  also,  my  kinsmen  and  my 
servants,  lend  them  money  and  grain.  Let  us,  therefore, 
leave  off  this  usury.  Restore  to  them  this  day  their  fields, 
their  vineyards,  their  oliveyards,  and  their  houses,  also  the 
usury  of  the  money  and  of  the  grain,  of  the  new  wine,  and 
of  the  oil,  that  you  exact  from  them.' 

Then  they  said,  *We  will  restore  them  and  will  demand 
nothing  from  them;  we  will  do  just  as  you  say.'.  Then  I 
called  the  priests  and  took  an  oath  of  them,  that  they 
would  do  according  to  this  promise.  Also  I  shook  out  the 
fold  of  my  garment,  and  said,  *  So  may  God  shake  out  every 
man  from  his  house  and  from  the  fruit  of  his  labor,  who 
does  not  fulfil  this  promise;  even  thus  may  he  be  shaken 
out  and  emptied.'     And  all  the  assembly  said,  *So  may  it 

120 


Nehe- 

miah's 

gene- 

rDsity 

\vh: 

gov 

ernoi 

('■'-''■•) 


NEHEMIAH'S  SOCIAL  AND  RELIGIOUS  REFORMS 

be.*     And  they  praised  Jehovah.     And  the  people  did  ac- 
cording to  this  promise. 

Moreover  from  the  time  that  I  was  appointed  to  be  their  ii, 
governor  in  the  land  of  Judah,  from  the  twentieth  year 
(445  B.C.)  even  to  the  thirty-second  year  (432)  of  Artax-  f«^!f 
erxes  the  king,  that  is  for  twelve  years,  I  and  my  kinsmen  ^vhiie 
had  not  eaten  the  bread  which  was  due  me  as  governor. 
But  the  former  governors  who  were  before  me  were  a  source 
of  expense  to  the  people,  and  took  of  them  bread  and  wine, 
and  also  forty  shekels  of  silver  each  day;  and  furthermore 
their  servants  oppressed  the  people.  But  I  did  not  so, 
because  of  the  fear  of  God.  I  also  devoted  myself  to  this 
work  on  the  wall,  and  we  did  not  buy  any  land ;  and  all  my 
servants  were  gathered  there  for  the  work.  Also  the  Jews 
and  the  rulers,  a  hundred  and  fifty  men,  besides  those  who 
came  to  us  from  among  the  surrounding  nations,  were  at 
my  table.  Now  that  which  was  prepared  for  each  day  was 
one  ox  and  six  choice  sheep  and  fowls.  These  were  pre- 
pared at  my  expense,  and  once  in  ten  days  wine  in  abun- 
dance for  all  the  people.  Yet  with  all  this  I  did  not  de- 
mand the  bread  which  was  due  me  as  governor,  because 
the  public  service  rested  heavily  upon  this  people.  Re- 
member to  my  credit,  0  my  God,  all  that  I  have  done  for 
this  people. 

Now  before  my  return  from  the  king,  Eliashib  the  priest,   12. 
who  was  appointed  over  the  chambers  of  the  house  of  our  ^l^^'of 
God,  being  related  to  Tobiah,  had  prepared  for  him  a  great  to-^.^ 
chamber,  where  formerly  they  had  stored  the  cereal-offer-  pSisel- 
ings,  the  incense,  the  vessels,  and  the  tithes  of  grain,  the 
new  wine,  and  the  oil.     But  during  this  time  I  had  not  been 


ber 


sions 
from 
the 

at  Jerusalem;  for  in  the  thirty-second  year  of  Artaxerxes  cLm- 
king  of  Babylon  I  went  to  the  king.  Then  after  some  time 
I  asked  leave  of  the  king,  and  I  came  to  Jerusalem  and  dis- 
covered the  crime  that  Eliashib  had  committed  for  the  sake 
of  Tobiah,  in  preparing  him  a  chamber  in  the  court  of  the 
house  of  God.  And  it  displeased  me  greatly;  therefore  I 
cast  all  the  household  possessions  of  Tobiah  out  of  the 
chamber.  Then  I  gave  command  that  they  should  cleanse 
the  chambers,  and  I  brought  there  again  the  vessels  of  the 
house  of  God,  with  the  cereal-offerings  and  the  incense. 

121 


NEHEMIAH'S  SOCIAL  AND  RELIGIOUS  REFORMS 

13.  Pro-       And  I  perceived  that  the  portions  of  the  Levites  had  not 
for'tlfe    been  given  them;   so  that  the  Levites  and  the  singers,  who 
supnort  performed  the  service  had  each  fled  to  his  field.     Then  I 
Levites   contended  with  the  rulers  and  said,  'Why  is  the  house  of 
^""'^      God  forsaken?*     And  I  gathered  them  together  and  placed 
them  at  their  posts.     And  all  Judah  brought  the  tithe  of  the 
grain  and  the  new  wine  and  the  oil  into  the  store-rooms. 
And  I  appointed  in  charge  of  the  store-rooms:    Shelemiah 
the  priest  and  Zadok  the  scribe,  and  Pedaiah  the  Levite; 
for  they  were  considered  faithful,  and  their  business  was 
to    distribute    to    their    kinsmen.     Remember    me,  0    my 
God,  concerning   this   and   forget   not   all  my  good  deeds 
that  I  have  done  for  the  house  of  my  God,  and  for  its 
services. 
ifPro-       At  that  time  I  saw  in  Judah  some  men  treading  wine- 
v-isions    pj-ggggg  Qjj  tjjg  sabbath  and  bringing  in  heaps  of  grain  and 
^e  ob-    loading  asses,  as  also  wine,  grapes,  figs,  and  all  kinds  of 
serva-     burdeus,  and  that  they  were  bringing  them  into  Jerusalem 
thTsab-  on  the  sabbath;    and  I  warned  them  when  they  sold  pro- 
nt!a)      visions.     Tyrians  also  dwelt  therein,  who  brought  in  fish 
and  all  kinds  of  wares,  and  sold  on  the  sabbath  to  the  in- 
habitants of  Judah  and  in  Jerusalem.     Then  I  contended 
with  the  nobles  of  Judah  and  said  to   them,  'What  evil 
thing  is  this  that  you  are  doing,  and  thereby  profaning  the 
sabbath?     Did  not  your  fathers  do  thus  and  did  not  our 
God  bring  all  this  calamity  upon  them  and  upon  us  and 
upon  this  city?     Yet  you  bring  more  wrath  upon  Israel 
by  profaning  the   sabbath.'     Accordingly,   when  it  began 
to  be  dark,  the  gates  of  Jerusalem  were  shut  before  the 
sabbath;    and  I  gave  command  that  they  should  not  be 
opened  until  after  the  sabbath.     And  I  placed  some  of  my 
servants  in  charge  of  the  gates,  and  commanded  that  no 
burden  should  be  brought  in  on  the  sabbath.     So  the  mer- 
chants and  sellers  of  aU  kinds  of  wares  spent  the  night 
without  Jerusalem  once  or  twice.     Then  I  warned  them 
and  said  to  them,  'Why  do  you  spend  the  night  before  the 
wall?     If  ye  do  so  again,  I  will  lay  hands  on  you.'     From 
that  time  forth  they  came  no  more  on  the  sabbath.     Re- 
member, 0  my  God,  this  also  to  my  credit  and  show  me 
mercy  according  to  the  greatness  of  thy  loving-kindness. 

122 


HYPOCRISY  OF  THE   JEWISH  LEADERS 

At  that  time  also  I  saw  the  Jews  who  had  married  women  is. 
of  Ashdod,  of  Ammon,  and  of  Moab.     And  their  children  ge"uc" 
spoke  half  in  the  language  of  Ashdod,  but  none  of  them  ^'"^^ll\ 
could  speak  in  the  Jews'  language,  but  according  to  the  mixed 
language  of  each  people.     And  I  contended  with  them  and  HapM 
cursed  them  and  struck  some  of  them  and  pulled  out  their  ^'"^  "^ 
hair  and  made  them  swear  by  God,  saying,  *You  shall  not 
give  your  daughters  to  their  sons  nor  take  their  daughters 
as  wives  for  your  sons  or  for  yourselves.     Did  not  Solomon 
king  of  Israel  sin  by  these  acts?    Yet  among  many  nations 
there  was  no  king  like  him,  and  he  was  beloved  by  his  God, 
and  God  made  him  king  over  all  Israel;  nevertheless  for- 
eign women  led  him  into  sin.     Shall  it  also  be  reported  of 
you  that  you  do  all  this  great  evil,  to  trespass  against  our 
God  in  marrying  foreign  women?' 

And  one  of  the  sons  of  Joiada,  the  son  of  Eliashib  the  i6. 
high  priest,  was  the  son-in-law  of  Sanballat  the  Horonite;  uo^f'of 
therefore  I  chased  him  from  me.     Remember  them,  0  my  ^^^^[^^ 
God,  because  they  have  defiled  the  covenant  of  the  priest-  c-"-^') 
hood  and  of  the  Levites. 

Thus  I  cleansed  them  from  all  foreigners  and  fixed  the  ij 
duties  for  the  priests  and  the  Levites,  each  for  his  appointed 
task,  and  the  bringing  of  wood  for  the  service  at  appointed 
times,  and  the  first-fruits.     Remember  it,  0  my  God,  to  my  foVms 
credit.  ^"''  "^ 

I.  Cruelty  and  Hypocrisy  of  the  Jewish  Leaders.  The  fifty- 
sixth  chapter  of  Isaiah  presents  a  sharp  contrast:  on  the  one  hand  a 
high  ideal  of  justice  toward  the  oppressed  and  tolerance  toward  all 
foreigners  who  sincerely  desired  to  unite  in  Jehovah's  worship;  on  the 
other  the  sordid  selfishness  of  the  Jewish  leaders,  who  disregarded  their 
responsibilities  and  thought  of  religion  only  as  a  round  of  ceremonial 
observances.  The  situation  is  very  similar  to  that  in  Northern  Israel 
in  the  days  of  Amos.  The  II  Isaiah  stands  on  the  same  platform  as 
did  his  predecessors  of  the  Assyrian  period.  He  strips  fearlessly  from 
the  rulers  of  the  community  the  mantle  of  hypocrisy  with  which  they 
sought  to  cover  their  shame.  In  clearest  terms  he  declares  that  their 
first  duty  to  God  is  to  loose  the  fetters  of  injustice  and  to  share  their 
bread  with  the  hungry.  This  stirring  prophetic  message  is  tke  natural 
introduction  to  the  reformatory  work  of  Nehemiah. 

123 


liesumi 
of  Ne- 
hemi- 
ih's  re- 


NEHEMIAH'S  SOCIAL  AND  RELIGIOUS  REFORMS 

II.  Nehemiah's  Method  of  Correcting  the  Social  Evils  in  the 
Community.  Nehemiah's  address  recorded  in  the  fifth  chai)ter  of  his 
memoirs  completes  the  picture  suggested  in  Isaiah  56  and  58.  The 
poor  had  been  compelled  by  their  poverty  to  sell  their  children  into 
slavery  to  the  rich  and  ruling  class.  In  order  to  pay  their  personal 
taxes  they  had  also  mortgaged  their  inherited  fields,  vineyards,  and 
houses.  Doubtless  much  of  the  tax  thus  raised  went  into  the  pockets 
of  their  rulers,  who  preyed  mercilessly  upon  the  helpless  and  needy. 
These  crimes  directly  violated  the  laws  of  Deuteronomy  (r/.  Deut. 
23»-  2"),  as  well  as  those  in  the  older  Book  of  the  Covenant  (Ex.  21-23). 
Nehemiah's  position,  therefore,  when  he  demanded  that  these  evils  be 
righted,  was  unassailable.  In  the  spirit  and  with  the  methods  of  the 
earlier  prophets  he  gathered  together  the  people,  probably  within  the 
precincts  of  the  temple  court,  and  plainly  and  unsparingly  denounced 
their  acts.  There  is  much  in  common  between  this  later  Jewish  lay- 
man and  the  shepherd  Amos.  Each  spoke  on  the  basis  of  close  per- 
sonal observation  and  experience;  but  Nehemiah  possessed  many  ad- 
vantages over  the  prophets  who  had  preceded  him.  His  own  personal 
example  lent  force  to  his  words.  Although  it  was  his  right  as  governor, 
he  had  exacted  no  tribute  from  the  Judean  community.  Even  though 
the  opportunity  had  probably  offered  itself,  he  steadily  refused  to  take 
their  hereditary  land  from  the  poor  who  applied  to  him  for  loans  of 
money  or  grain.  Instead  of  enslaving  his  countrymen,  he  had  lost  no 
opportunity  to  free  those  who  had  been  forced  by  misfortune  or  poverty 
into  slavery.  He  had  also  entertained  lavishly  rich  and  poor  alike,  and 
thus  given  to  all  an  example  of  practical  charity.  His  authority  as 
Persian  governor  doubtless  carried  great  weight  with  the  cringing, 
greedy  leaders  at  Jerusalem.  Above  all,  the  force  of  his  personality 
was  irresistible.  It  is  easy  to  imagine  the  powerful  impression  which 
his  words  made  upon  them.  The  restoration  of  their  lands  and  the 
freeing  of  their  children  were  undoubtedly  mighty  factors  in  arousing 
the  men  of  Jerusalem  to  those  herculean  efforts  which  alone  made  pos- 
sible the  rebuilding  of  the  walls  in  the  brief  period  of  fifty-two  days. 

III.  The  Historical  Value  of  Nehemiah  13.  In  his  Composition 
of  Ezra-Nehcmiah  (pp.  44-49)  Professor  Torrey,  of  Yale,  maintains  that 
this  chapter  is  a  pure  creation  of  the  Chronicler.  Certainly  its  phrase- 
ology and  the  subjects  with  which  it  deals  are  characteristic  of  the 
Chronicler,  but  on  the  whole  it  is  probable  that  he  has  here  simply  re- 
cast what  was  originally  an  extract  from  the  memoirs  of  Nehemiah. 
Some  of  the  phrases  peculiar  to  the  Chronicler  are  loosely  connected 

124 


THE  HISTORICAL  VALUE  OF  NEHEMIAH  13 

with  the  context.  The  nucleus  which  remains  has  the  vigorous  style  of 
Nehemiah  and  many  of  his  peculiar  idioms.  Its  courageous,  assertive 
spirit  is  very  different  from  that  of  the  other  writings  of  the  Chronicler. 
It  is  also  doubtful  whether  this  later  writer,  with  his  strong,  priestly 
interests,  would  have  made  Nehemiah,  the  layman,  a  religious  reformer 
and  therefore  in  a  sense  the  rival  of  Ezra.  Above  all,  the  work  attrib- 
uted to  Nehemiah  in  this  chapter  is  in  harmony  with  his  spirit  and 
attitude,  as  revealed  in  the  unquestioned  extracts  from  his  memoirs. 
Already,  as  stated  in  T",  he  had  told  Sanballat  and  Tobiah  that  they 
should  have  no  portion  or  memorial  in  Jerusalem.  He  had  already 
shown  himself  keen  in  righting  wrongs  within  the  community.  Zeal  in 
preserving  the  sanctity  of  the  sabbath  and  in  opposing  heathen  mar- 
riages was  characteristic  rather  of  the  Jews  of  the  dispersion  than  of 
those  of  Palestine.  It  is  probable,  therefore,  that  this  chapter  records 
Nehemiah's  work  when  he  revisited  Jerusalem  some  time  after  432  B.C., 
although  it  must  be  frankly  confessed  that  the  historical  evidence  is  far 
from  conclusive  and  that  the  entire  account  of  this  second  visit,  includ- 
ing the  chronological  data  in  5'^  and  the  reference  to  the  expulsion  of 
Sanballat  in  V,  may  possibly  be  due  to  the  Chronicler's  desire  to  dis- 
credit the  Samaritans  and  to  enlist  the  authority  of  Nehemiah  in  sup- 
port of  the  later  priestly  laws  and  customs. 

IV.  Regulations  Regarding  the  Temple  Service.  The  expulsion 
of  Tobiah  the  Ammonite  from  the  room  which  had  been  assigned  him 
in  the  temple  by  Eliashib,  the  high  priest,  was  apparently  due  to  two 
reasons,  first  because  Tobiah  was  persona  non  grata  to  Nehemiah  and 
had  already  shown  himself  a  dangerous  foe  to  the  Jews.  The  second 
and  chief  reason  was  because  the  room  was  needed  for  storing  the  offer- 
ings that  were  brought  in  for  the  support  of  the  temple  officials.  These 
offerings  were  presented  in  accordance  with  the  demands  of  the  Deu- 
teronomic  regulation,  which  at  this  time  was  the  code  acknowledged  by 
the  Judean  community  (Deut.  18^  14^'  "•  ^*).  The  narrative  adds  that, 
with  his  practical  knowledge  of  affairs,  Nehemiah  appointed  a  repre- 
sentative committee  consisting  of  a  priest,  a  scribe,  and  a  Levite,  and  to 
them  he  intrusted  the  task  of  receiving  and  distributing  the  temple  tithes 
to  their  kinsmen. 

V.  Provisions  Regarding  Sabbath  Observation  and  Foreign 
Marriages.  Far  away  from  the  temple,  and  therefore  unable  to  par- 
ticipate in  the  distinctive  feasts  and  ceremonials  that  distinguished  the 
religious  life  of  their  race,  and  confronted  by  the  constant  danger  of 
being  absorbed  by  the  heathen  among  whom  they  found  themselves, 
(he  Jews  of  the  dispersion  placed  strong  emphasis  on  two  institutiom, 

125 


THE  ADOPTION  OF  THE  PRIESTLY  LAW 

The  one  was  the  observation  of  the  sabbath  and  the  other  was  the 
preservation  of  the  purity  of  their  blood  by  abstaining  from  all  mar- 
riage alliances  with  their  Gentile  neighbors.  In  Palestine,  where  they 
were  able  to  revive  the  ancient  feasts  in  connection  with  the  temple, 
and  where  the  danger  of  absorption  was  not  so  imminent,  their  prac- 
tices in  these  regards  appear  to  have  been  much  more  lax.  Not  only 
had  the  priests  set  the  example  by  contracting  foreign  marriages,  but 
apparently  about  this  time  the  author  of  the  beautiful  story  of  Ruth,  by 
citing  the  tradition  regarding  the  Moabite  ancestry  of  their  illustrious 
King  David,  voiced  the  belief  of  many  in  the  community  that  such  mar- 
riages were  permissible.  Nehemiah,  however,  rigorously  opposed  this 
tendency.  He  also  appreciated  the  menace  to  the  dignity  and  character 
of  the  temple  service,  if  the  commercial  pursuits  of  ordinary  days  were 
carried  into  the  sabbath.  His  measure,  therefore,  in  closing  the  gates 
and  thus  excluding  all  traders,  was  both  sane  and  effective.  In  setting 
his  face  strongly  against  foreign  marriages  he  was  simply  enforcing  the 
laws  found  in  Deuteronomy  7'- '  and  33^  which  forbade  the  Hebrews  to 
intermarry  with  the  people  of  the  land. 

VI.  Significance  of  Nehemiali's  Work.  In  rebuilding  the  walls 
of  Jerusalem  Nehemiah  prepared  the  way  for  that  revival  of  the  Jewish 
state  which  characterized  the  closing  years  of  the  Persian  period.  More 
important  still  was  his  work  in  re-establishing  a  close  relation  between 
the  Jews  of  the  dispersion  and  those  of  Palestine.  He  himself  was  the 
connecting  link  between  them,  and  his  activity  prepared  the  minds  of 
the  Palestinian  Jews  for  the  acceptance  of  those  new  principles  that 
were  strongly  held  by  leaders  like  himself.  He  also  enforced  the  ethical 
and  social  ideals  of  the  earlier  prophets,  and  ably  advocated  the  prin- 
ciples that  are  fundamental  in  the  late  priestly  laws.  Above  all,  in  his 
own  personality  as  a  prophetic  layman,  he  held  up  before  his  race  an  ex- 
ample of  patriotism,  self-sacrifice,  efficiency,  and  devotion  to  the  service 
of  Jehovah  which  made  a  profound  and  lasting  impression  upon  his 
own  and  later  generations. 

§  CII.     THE  TRADITIONAL  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  ADOPTION  OF 
THE  PRIESTLY  LAW 

return  III  the  rclgii  of  Attaxerxcs  king  of  Persia,  Ezra,  a  descend- 
aLdh^  ant  of  Aaron,  went  up  from  Babylon;  and  he  was  a  scribe 
band  to  skilled  in  the  law  of  Moses,  which  Jehovah,  the  God  of  Israel, 
saiem  had  given.  And  the  king  granted  him  all  his  request,  inas- 
7^"fo)    much  as  the  hand  of  Jehovah  his  God  was  upon  him.     And 

126 


THE  ADOPTION  OF  THE  PRIESTLY  LAW 

some  of  the  Israelites,  and  of  the  priests,  the  Levites,  the 
singers,  the  porters,  and  the  temple  servants  went  up  to 
Jerusalem  [with  him].  And  he  came  to  Jersualem  in  the 
fifth  month,  which  was  in  the  seventh  year  of  the  king.  For 
on  the  first  day  of  the  first  month  he  began  the  journey  from 
Babylon,  and  on  the  first  day  of  the  fifth  month  he  came  to 
Jerusalem,  since  the  good  hand  of  God  was  with  him.  For 
Ezra  had  set  his  heart  to  seek  the  law  of  Jehovah,  and  to 
observe  it  and  to  teach  in  Israel  statutes  and  ordinances. 

And  when  the  seventh  month  drew  near,  all  the  people 
gathered  themselves  together  as  one  man  to  the  broad  place 
that  was  before  the  Water  Gate.     And  they  spoke  to  Ezra  tV,'t' 

of  the 
law  to 


Kead- 
inK  and 


people 

(Neh. 


the  priest  and  scribe  to  bring  the  book  of  the  law  of  Moses, 
which  Jehovah  had  commanded  Israel.  And  Ezra  the  ihe 
priest  brought  the  law  before  the  assembly  of  men  and 
women,  and  all  who  could  hear  with  understanding,  upon  7''^, 
the  first  day  of  the  seventh  month.  And  he  read  from  it  be- 
fore the  open  place  that  was  before  the  Water  Gate,  from 
early  morning  until  mid-day,  in  the  presence  of  the  men 
and  women  and  of  those  who  could  understand ;  and  all  the 
people  were  attentive  to  the  book  of  the  law.  And  Ezra  the 
priest  and  scribe  stood  upon  a  wooden  pulpit,  which  they 
made  for  the  purpose  and  opened  the  book  in  the  sight  of  all 
the  people — for  he  was  above  all  the  people — and  when  he 
opened  it  all  the  people  stood  up.  And  Ezra  blessed  Jehovah, 
the  great  God.  And  all  the  people  answered.  Amen,  Amen, 
while  they  lifted  up  their  hands  and  bowed  their  heads  and 
worshipped  Jehovah  with  their  faces  to  the  ground. 

Then  Ezra  the  priest,  the  scribe,  and  the  Levites  who  s. 
taught  the  people  said  to  all  the  people.  This  day  is  holy  to  ma'JJj 
Jehovah  your  God ;  mourn  not,  nor  weep ;  for  all  the  people  !°i^|- 
wept  when  they  heard  the  words  of  the  law.     Then  he  said  and 
to  them.  Go  away,  eat  the  fat,  and  drink  the  sweet,  and  send  gifts  to 
portions  to  him  for  whom  nothing  is  prepared,  for  this  day  ^^^^'^ 
is  holy  to  our  Lord ;  and  do  not  be  troubled,  for  the  joy  of  ("0 
Jehovah  is  your  bulwark.     So  the  Levites  quieted  all  the 
people,  saying,  Be  still,  for  the  day  is  holy,  and  do  not  be 
troubled.    And  all  the  people  went  away  to  eat  and  drink  and 
to  send  portions  and  to  make  a  great  rejoicing,  for  they  had 
understood  the  words  which  had  been  made  known  to  them. 

127 


THE  ADOPTION  OF  THE  PRIESTLY  LAW 

4.  Ceie-       And  on  the  second  day  the  heads  of  fathers'  houses  of  all 
orthe"    the  people,  the  priests  and  the  Levites  were  gathered  to- 
tatfer"^    gether  to  Ezra  the  scribe,  in  order  to  gain  an  insight  into  the 
nacies     words  of  the  law.     And  they  found  written  in  the  law,  how 
fngTJ^"  Jehovah  had  commanded  by  Moses  that  the  Israelites  should 
jthenew  dwell  in  booths  at  the  feast  in  the  seventh  month;  and  that 
("-»)      they  should  proclaim  aloud  in  all  their  cities  and  in  Jeru- 
salem :  Go  forth  to  the  mount  and  bring  olive  branches  and 
branches  of  wild  olive  and  myrtle  and  palm  branches  and 
branches  of  thick  trees  to  make  booths,  as  it  is  prescribed. 
So  the  people  went  out  and  brought  them,  and  made  them- 
selves booths,  each  man  upon  the  roof  of  his  house  and  in 
their  courts  and  in  the  courts  of  the  house  of  God  and  in  the 
open  space  at  the  Water  Gate  and  in  the  open  space  at  the 
Ephraim  Gate.     And  all  the  assembly  of  those  who  had 
come  back  from  the  captivity  made  booths  and  lived  in  the 
booths ;  for  since  the  days  of  Joshua  the  son  of  Nun  to  that 
day  the  Israelites  had  not  done  so.     And  there  was  very 
great  gladness.     And   day  by  day,  from  the  first  to  the 
last  day,  he  read  in  the  book  of  the  law  of  God.     And 
they  celebrated  the  feast  seven  days,  and  on  the  eighth 
day,  as  was  the  custom,  there  was  a  concluding  solemn 
assembly. 

5.  Con-  Now  in  the  twenty-fourth  day  of  this  month  the  Israelites 
oft'i^e"  were  assembled  with  fasting,  and  with  sackcloth  and  earth 
\9?-?\^  Upon  their  heads.  And  the  children  of  Israel  had  sepa- 
rated themselves  from  all  foreigners,  and  stood  and  con- 
fessed their  sins  and  the  iniquities  of  their  fathers.  And  they 
stood  up  in  their  place  and  read  in  the  book  of  the  law  of 
Jehovah  their  God  a  fourth  part  of  the  day;  and  another 
fourth  part  they  confessed  and  worshipped  Jehovah  their 

6.  ^0^- 

Ezra's        Aud  Ezia  said.  Thou  art  Jehovah,  even  thou  alone;  thou 

jeho"'  hast  made  heaven  and  the  heaven  of  heavens  with  all  their 
vah'3  host,  the  earth  and  all  things  that  are  on  it,  the  seas  and  all 
preme  that  is  in  them,  and  thou  preservest  them  all  and  the  host  of 
heaven  worshippeth  thee.  Thou  art  Jehovah  the  God,  who 
didst  choose  Abraham  and  bring  him  forth  out  of  Ur  of 
Abra-  the  Chaldees,  and  didst  give  him  the  name  Abraham, 
(.%')'       and  find  his  heart  faithful  before  thee  and  make  a  cove- 

128 


rule 
and 
prom- 
ises to 


THE  ADOPTION  OF  THE  PRIESTLY  LAW 

nant  with  him  to  give  the  land  of  the  Canaanites  to  his 
descendants,  and  hast  performed  thy  words,  for  thou  art 
righteous. 

Now  therefore,  our  God,  the  great,  the  mighty,  and  the  i.  Peti- 
terrible  God,  who  keepest  covenant  and  kindness,  let  not  all  avert° 
the  aflaiction  seem  little  before  thee,  that  hath  come  on  us,  ^^'^ .   ^ 
on  our  kings,  our  nobles,  our  priests,  our  prophets,  our  judg- 
fathers,  and  on  all  thy  people,  since  the  days  of  the  kings  of  ^a"*^ 
Assyria  to  this  day.     However  thou  art  iust  in  all  that  has  ^^""^ 

UDon 

come  upon  us ;  for  thou  hast  done  right,  but  we  have  done  the  race 
wickedly,  neither  have  our  kings,  our  nobles,  our  priests,  ^^^'^ 
nor  our  fathers,  kept  thy  law  nor  heeded  thy  commands  and 
thy  testimonies  with  which  thou  didst  testify  against  them. 
For  they  have  not  served  thee  in  the  time  of  their  kingly  rule, 
and  in  spite  of  thy  great  goodness  that  thou  gavest  them, 
they  have  not  turned  from  their  wicked  deeds.  Behold,  we 
this  day  are  slaves,  and  as  for  the  land  that  thou  gavest  to 
our  fathers  to  eat  its  fruit  and  enjoy  its  good  gifts,  see  we 
are  only  slaves  in  it.  And  it  yieldeth  a  great  income  to  the 
kings  whom  thou  hast  set  over  us  because  of  our  sin ;  also 
they  have  power  over  our  bodies  and  over  our  cattle,  at  their 
pleasure,  and  we  are  in  great  distress. 

Moreover  in  addition  to  all  this  we  made  a  fixed  covenant  8. 
and  wrote  it  out,  and  our  nobles,  our  Levites,  and  our  priests  oPthe" 
were  enrolled  upon  the  sealed  document.  Tov"-^" 

And  all  those  who  had  separated  themselves  from  the  peo-  nant 
pies  of  the  lands  to  the  law  of  God,  their  wives,  their  sons,   ^  ^ 
and  their  daughters,  every  one  who  had  knowledge  and  in-  g  j^^^. 
sight,  strongly  supported  their  kinsmen,  their  nobles,  and  uiationa 
entered  into  a  solemn  obligation  and  took  oath  to  walk  in  byThe 
God's  law,  which  v/as  given  by  Moses  the  servant  of  God,  ^"'jty 
and  to  observe  and  do  all  the  commands  of  Jehovah  our  (lo^*"* 
Lord,  and  his  ordinances  and  his  statutes;    and  that  we 
would  neither  give  our  daughters  to  the  peoples  of  the  land 
nor  take  their  daughters  as  wives  for  our  sons ;  and  that,  if 
the  peoples  of  the  land  should  bring  wares  or  any  grain  on 
the  sabbath  day  to  sell,  we  would  not  buy  of  them  on  the 
sabbath  or  on  a  holy  day ;  and  that  on  the  seventh  year  we 
would  leave  the  land  uncultivated  and  would  refrain  from 
the  exaction  of  any  debt. 

129 


THE  ADOPTION  OF  THE  PRIESTLY  LAW 

10..  We  also  imposed  upon  ourselves  the  obligation  to  give 

UonSs*.  yearly  the  third  part  of  a  shekel  for  the  service  of  the  house 
suined  of  our  God,  for  the  bread  that  was  set  forth,  and  for  the  con- 
support  tinual  burnt-offering,  for  the  sabbaths,  the  new  moons,  the 
tempfe  Axcd  fcasts,  and  the  holy  things,  and  for  the  sin-offerings  to 
^°[Jj^,  make  atonement  for  Israel,  and  for  all  the  work  of  the 
"«"?)  house  of  our  God.  And  we  cast  lots,  the  priests,  the  Levites, 
and  the  people,  for  the  wood-offering,  to  bring  it  into  the 
house  of  our  God,  according  to  our  father's  houses,  at  ap- 
pointed times  year  by  year,  to  bum  upon  the  altar  of  Jeho- 
vah our  God,  as  it  is  prescribed  in  the  law ;  and  to  bring  the 
earliest  products  of  our  ground,  and  the  first  of  all  fruit  of 
every  kind  of  tree  year  by  year,  to  the  temple  of  Jehovah; 
also  the  first-born  of  our  sons  and  of  our  cattle,  as  is  pre- 
scribed in  the  law,  and  the  firstlings  of  our  herds  and  of  our 
flocks,  to  bring  to  the  house  of  God  to  the  priests  who  min- 
ister in  the  house  of  our  God ;  and  that  we  should  bring  the 
first  bread  baked  of  our  dough,  the  fruit  of  every  kind  of 
tree,  the  new  wine  and  the  oil,  to  the  priests,  in  the  chambers 
of  the  house  of  our  God ;  and  the  tithes  of  our  ground  to  the 
Levites ;  and  that  they,  the  Levites,  should  receive  the  tithes 
in  all  the  cities  of  our  agricultural  districts.  And  that  the 
priest  the  son  of  Aaron  should  be  with  the  Levites,  when  the 
Levites  shall  bring  up  the  tithe  of  the  tithes  to  the  house  of 
our  God,  to  the  chambers,  into  the  store-house.  For  the 
Israelites  and  the  sons  of  Levi  shall  bring  the  gifts  of  grain, 
of  new  wine,  and  of  oil,  into  the  chambers,  where  are  the 
vessels  of  the  sanctuary,  and  the  priests  who  minister  and 
the  porters  and  the  singers,  and  that  we  would  not  neglect 
the  house  of  our  God. 

I.  The  Ezra  Tradition.  The  tradition  regarding  Ezra  and  his  work 
presents  many  difficult  problems.  Part  of  it  is  found  in  the  heart  of 
the  book  of  Nehemiah;  while  another  part  is  now  found  in  the  second 
half  of  the  book  of  Ezra.  It  is  not  entirely  clear  whether  this  dislocation 
is  due  to  the  Chronicler,  who  desired  to  give  Ezra,  the  priest  and  scribe, 
the  precedence  before  Nehemiah,  the  layman,  or  to  the  mistake  of  a 
scribe.  A  recent  writer  (Professor  Torrey,  in  Composition  of  Ezra-Neh.) 
has  shown  convincingly  that  the  Ezra  story  in  its  present  form  is  at 
least  from  the  school  to  which  the  Chronicler  belonged,  if  not  from  his 

130 


THE  EZRA  TRADITION 

own  pen.  Not  only  does  it  abound  in  the  characteristic  phrases  of  this 
voluminous  editor,  but  it  also  reflects  at  many  points  his  peculior  con- 
ception of  the  history  of  this  period.  Ezra  is  described  as  a  descendant 
of  Aaron  and  "a  scribe  skilled  in  the  law  of  Moses."  His  work  as 
interpreter  of  the  law,  which  he  is  represented  as  bringing  in  his  hand, 
is  typical  of  the  scribes,  who  were  becoming  the  chief  teachers  of  Juda- 
ism in  the  days  of  the  Chronicler  (the  Greek  period).  The  decree  of 
Artaxerxes  found  in  the  seventh  chapter  of  Ezra  suggests  at  every  point 
its  late  Jewish  origin.  It  confers  upon  Ezra,  the  scribe,  royal  authority 
far  eclipsing  that  given  by  Artaxerxes  to  Nehemiah,  his  favorite.  A 
sum  representing  more  than  three  million  dollars  is  placed  at  Ezra's 
disposal.  At  his  summons  seventeen  hundred  priests,  Levites,  singers, 
and  servants  of  the  temple  rally  about  the  standard  of  the  faithful  scribe. 
He  is  represented  as  going  under  the  royal  protection  to  Palestine  to  in- 
struct the  Judean  community,  to  reform  its  abuses,  and  to  institute  the 
rule  of  the  law  of  Moses  which  he  bore  in  his  hand. 

He  first  holds  a  great  synagogue  service  in  which  the  law  is  read  and 
interpreted  to  the  people.  They  are  then  bidden  to  observe  the  Feast 
of  Booths  or  Tabernacles  in  accordance  with  its  regulations.  I^ater, 
when  he  discovers  that  the  people  of  the  land  have  entered  into  foreign 
marriages,  he  tears  his  clothes  and  hair  and  sits  for  hours  overwhelmed 
by  the  great  crime  that  rests  upon  the  community.  When  the  people 
are  gathered  about  him,  he  upbraids  them  for  their  laxness  and  secures 
the  appointment  of  a  commission  with  himself  at  the  head  to  investigate 
and  put  an  end  to  these  evil  practices.  ^Nhen  after  three  months  the 
community  has  been  purified  from  this  foreign  element,  the  people  are 
again  assembled  to  listen  to  the  reading  of  the  law.  Then  Ezra  utters 
a  fervent  prayer  in  which  he  sets  forth  Jehovah's  leadership  of  his  people 
in  the  past  and  the  disasters  which  have  come  as  a  result  of  their  sins. 
After  this  public  petition  for  Jehovah's  forgiveness,  the  people  through 
their  nobles,  Levites,  and  priests  subscribe  in  writing  to  the  regulations 
imposed  by  the  lawbook  that  Ezra  had  brought.  Its  more  important 
regulations  are  also  recapitulated.  They  aro  to  refrain  from  foreign 
marriages,  to  observe  strictly  the  sabbath  laws,  and  also  the  requirements 
of  the  seventh  year  of  release,  to  bring  to  the  temple  the  annual  tax  of 
one-tenth  of  a  shekel  and  the  other  dues  required  for  its  support  and  for 
the  maintenance  of  the  priests  and  Levites. 

II.  The  Historical  Value  of  the  Ezra  Tradition.  Recognizing 
that  the  Ezra  tradition  comes  from  the  hand  of  the  Chronicler,  certain 
Old  Testament  scholars  are  inclined  to  regard  it  as  entirely  unhistorical. 

131 


THE  ADOPTION  OF  THE  PRIESTLY  LAW 

It  can  no  longer  be  regarded  as  a  strictly  historical  record.  Like  II 
Chronicles  31,  it  is  shot  through  with  the  ideas  current  during  the  Greek 
period.  With  no  desire  to  deceive,  but  with  nothing  of  the  modern  his- 
torical spirit,  the  Chronicler  freely  projects  the  institutions,  ideas,  and 
traditions  of  his  own  day  into  these  earlier  periods.  The  result  is  that 
he  has  given  not  an  exact  or  reliable  historical  record,  but  his  own  con- 
ception of  the  way  in  which  the  course  of  history  should  have  unfolded. 
The  Ezra  tradition  also  lacks  the  support  not  only  of  contemporary 
testimony,  but  also  of  all  the  Jews  who  wrote  during  the  next  few  cen- 
turies. Ben  Sira  in  his  review  of  Israel's  heroes  speaks  in  highest  terms 
of  Nehemiah,  but  knows  nothing  of  Ezra's  work.  Even  the  compara- 
tively late  Jewish  tradition  reflected  in  the  opening  chapters  of  II  Mac- 
cabees attributes  to  Nehemiah  the  re-establishment  of  the  temple  ser- 
vice and  the  collection  of  the  sacred  writings  of  his  race.  At  many 
points  the  Ezra  tradition  is  also  inconsistent  with  the  straightforward 
contemporary  record  contained  in  Nehemiah 's  memoirs.  The  real  ques- 
tion is  whether  or  not  there  is  a  historical  nucleus  in  the  Ezra  story,  and 
if  so,  what  are  the  facts  which  it  reflects. 

III.  The  Facts  Underlying  the  Ezra  Tradition.  The  later  records 
make  it  clear  that  during  the  latter  part  of  the  Persian  period  the  atti- 
tude of  the  Jews  in  Palestine  toward  their  neighbors  became  more  and 
more  exclusive.  Nehemiah  appears  to  have  given  a  great  impetus  to 
the  movement  which  ultimately  resulted  in  the  Samaritan  schism  and 
the  high  wall  that  henceforth  separated  Jew  and  Gentile.  The  em- 
phasis on  the  strict  observation  of  the  sabbath  grew  stronger  and 
stronger,  until  at  the  beginning  of  the  Greek  period  the  Jews  of  Jerusalem 
preferred  to  fall  before  the  sword  of  their  foes  rather  than  fight  on  the 
sabbath  day  (c/.  §  CIII).  The  ritual  of  the  temple  became  even  more 
elaborate,  and  its  income  was  greatly  increased  during  the  latter  part  of 
the  Persian  period.  The  extension  of  the  territory  of  the  Judean  com- 
munity implied  that  its  numbers  were  increased  by  the  return  of  loyal 
Jews  attracted  by  the  security  offered  by  its  walls  and  by  the  new  spirit 
that  animated  the  Jews  of  Palestine.  The  priestly  laws  which  were 
formulated  to  meet  the  new  needs  of  the  Judean  community  appear  to 
have  been  written  in  Palestine  and  by  those  closely  connected  with  the 
temple  service,  but  in  the  emphasis  upon  the  sabbath  and  in  their  en- 
deavor to  prevent  marriage  with  foreigners  they  suggest  the  presence 
and  influence  of  Jews  who  had  returned  from  the  land  of  the  dispersion. 
It  is  possible  that  among  those  who  thus  returned  was  the  priest  Ezra, 
and  he  may  have  been  at  the  head  of  one  of  these  groups  of  returning 

132 


FACTS  UNDERLYING  THE  EZRA  TRADITION 

exiles.  In  the  days  of  Josiah  the  code  contained  in  the  newly  discovered 
Book  of  the  Covenant  was  presented  to  the  people  in  a  public  assembly 
and  adopted  and  enforced  by  the  king,  who  acted  as  the  representative 
of  the  people  (§  LXXXIIP").  It  is  probable  that  in  the  small  Judean 
community  new  regulations  gained  acceptance  in  the  same  way,  except 
that  the  people  were  represented  by  their  nobles  and  priests  rather  than 
by  a  king.  The  tradition  of  Ezra,  therefore,  is  typical  of  the  great 
movement  that  shaped  the  life  of  Judaism  in  the  century  immediately 
following  the  work  of  Nehemiah. 

IV.  Origin  and  Aims  of  the  Priestly  Laws.  The  late  priestly  laws 
which  moulded  the  life  of  Judaism  are  found  in  the  books  of  Exodus, 
Leviticus,  and  Numbers.  They  do  not  constitute  a  unified  code,  but 
rather  are  made  up  of  a  series  of  smaller  groups  of  laws,  the  older  nu- 
cleus being  the  Holiness  Code  found  in  chapters  17-26  of  Leviticus  {cf. 
§  XCIIP").  In  some  cases  variants  of  the  same  law  are  found  in  dif- 
ferent groups.  Certain  of  these  laws  simply  reiterate  in  slighdy  different 
form  those  already  found  in  the  primitive  and  Deuteronomic  codes;  but 
in  general  they  supplement  these  earlier  codes.  The  formulation,  col- 
lection, and  codification  of  these  later  laws  apparently  continued  until 
toward  the  latter  part  of  the  Persian  period  when  the  Samaritan  schism 
(§  CIII)  fixed  them  in  their  present  form. 

To  these  laws  was  prefixed,  as  an  introduction,  the  priestly  history 
that  opens  with  the  account  of  creation  in  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis 
and  briefly  traces  Israel's  history  to  the  settlement  in  Canaan.  The 
interest  of  these  late  priestly  historians  is,  like  that  of  the  Chronicler,  in 
the  origin  of  institutions.  Thus  the  object  of  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis 
is  to  give  the  traditional  origin  and  authority  of  the  sabbath.  The  ac- 
count of  the  flood  culminates  in  a  covenant  embodying  the  command 
that  man  shall  not  eat  of  the  blood  of  sacrificial  animals;  the  priestly 
stories  regarding  Abraham  aim  to  give  the  origin  of  the  rite  of  circum- 
cision Israel's  early  experiences  in  the  wilderness  furnish  the  setting 
for  the  giving  of  the  law  at  Sinai.  In  this  way  the  late  editors  of  these 
opening  books  of  the  Old  Testament  connect  all  of  Israel's  legislation 
with  Moses  and  aim  to  establish  its  divine  authority. 

V.  Their  Important  Regulations.  The  central  aim  in  all  these 
late  priesdy  laws  was  similar  to  that  of  Ezekiel:  it  was  to  make  Israel  a 
holy  people  and  to  prevent  them  from  falling  again  into  the  sins  to  which 
were  attributed  the  overwhelming  disasters  that  had  overtaken  them. 
This  aim  they  sought  to  accomplish:  (1)  by  making  the  temple  and  its 
services  the  centre  of  the  life  of  the  people  and  through  ceremonial  bar- 
riers and  regulations  to  shield  it  from  everything  that  might  pollute  it; 


THE  LAST  CENTURY   OF  PERSIAN  RULE 

(?.)  by  rendering  ths  temple  service  attractive;  (3)  by  Insuring  through 
rigid  ceremonial  laws  the  purity  of  its  priesthood;  (4)  by  j^rcscrving  the 
ceremonial  cleanliness  of  the  people  through  strict  laws  regarding  the 
food  which  they  ate  and  elaborate  provisions  for  their  purification  in 
case  they  were  contaminated  by  contact  with  that  which  Avas  regarded 
as  unclean;  (5)  by  prohibiting  absolutely  all  marriages  with  the  heathen: 
and  (6)  by  emphasizing  the  rigid  observation  of  the  sabbath  and  other 
distinctive  institutions.  In  general  these  late  priestly  laws  represented 
a  return  to  the  older  and  more  primitive  conception  of  religion,  and  de- 
fined duty  in  terms  of  ceremonial  rather  than  moral  acts. 

VI.  Their  Practical  Effects.  Later  Judaism  represents  to  a  great 
extent  the  result  of  the  rigid  enforcement  of  these  regulations.  Its  life 
was  centralized  more  and  more  about  the  temple.  In  its  services  the 
people  found  their  chiet  interest  and  joy.  The  numbers  of  the  priests 
and  Levites  were  also  greatly  increased.  To  the  older  temple  dues 
many  new  ones  were  added.  Thus  each  man  brought  to  the  temple  the 
first-born  of  his  flock.  Even  his  oldest  son  must  be  redeemed  within  a 
month  after  his  birth  by  a  gift  of  five  shekels  (which  represented  in  modern 
currency  between  three  and  four  dollars).  Of  every  animal  slain  the 
shoulder,  two  joints,  and  the  stomach  went  to  the  priests.  Of  the  vintage 
and  oil  and  grain  they  received  about  one-fiftieth.  In  addition  a  tithe 
was  turned  over  to  the  Levites.  Part  of  the  wool  in  every  sheep-shearing, 
as  well  as  a  part  of  the  bread  which  they  baked,  found  its  way  to  the 
temple.  In  addition  a  large  income  came  through  the  vows  made  by  the 
people  or  the  conscience  money  which  was  paid  either  in  currency  or 
gifts.  Although  the  priests  had  no  temporal  authority  by  which  to  en- 
force these  laws,  it  is  evident  that  the  people  bore  their  heavy  burdens 
gladly  and  brought  willingly  their  offerings,  that  they  might  thereby 
win  a  definite  assurance  of  Jehovah's  favor.  The  law  was  to  them  a 
source  of  joy  rather  than  a  burden.  Their  love  for  it  steadily  grew  until 
two  centuries  later  during  the  Maccabean  persecutions  there  were  many 
who  were  ready  to  lay  down  their  lives  for  it. 

§  cm.     THE  JEWISH  STATE  DURING  THE  LAST  CENTURY 
OF  PERSIAN  RULE 

Thy  loving-kindness,  0  Jehovah,  is  in  the  heavens, 

Thy  faithfulness  reacheth  to  the  skies, 

Thy  righteousness  is  like  the  mighty  mountains, 

Thy  judgments  are  like  the  great  deep; 

Thou  preservest  man  and  beast. 

134 


THE  LAST  CENTURY  OF  PERSIAN  RULE 

How  precious  is  thy  loving-kindness,  0  God! 

And  the  sons  of  men  put  their  trust  in  the  shadow  of  thy 

wings. 
They  are  fully  satisfied  with  the  rich  things  of  thy  house, 
And  thou  makest  them  drink  of  thy  river  of  delights. 
For  with  thee  is  the  fountain  of  life. 
And  in  thy  light  shall  we  see  light. 
0  continue  thy  loving-kindness  to  those  who  know  thee, 
And  thy  righteousness  to  the  upright  in  heart. 

The  word  of  Jehovah,  which  came  to  Joel,  the  son  of  Pethuel :  2.  je- 

Blow  a  horn  in  Zion,  ]*°J^y* 

Sound  an  alarm  in  my  holy  mountain,  hkn"d*'^ 

Let  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  land  tremble,  (Joei 

For  the  day  of  Jehovah  comes,  ^''^'"^ 
For  near  is  the  day  of  darkness  and  gloom, 
The  day  of  cloud  and  thick  darkness! 

Like  the  light  of  dawn  scattered  over  the  mountains,       3.  Ad- 

A  people  great  and  powerful;  ofhil 

Its  like  has  not  been  from  of  old,  ^read^ 

Neither  shall  be  any  more  after  it,  (*■■♦) 

Even  to  the  years  of  coming  ages. 

Before  them  the  fire  devours. 

And  behind  them  a  flame  bums; 

Like  the  garden  of  Eden  is  the  land  before  them, 

And  after  them  it  is  a  desolate  desert, 

Yea,  nothing  escapes  them. 

Their  appearance  is  as  the  appearance  of  horses, 

And  like  horsemen  they  run. 

Like  the  sound  of  chariots  on  the  tops  of  the  mountains 

they  leap, 
Like  the  crackle  of  flames  devouring  stubble, 
Like  a  mighty  people  preparing  for  battle. 
Peoples  are  in  anguish  before  them, 
All  faces  glow  with  excitement. 


Like  mighty  men  they  run,  ^.^^.^ 

Like  warriors  they  mount  up  a  wall,  "".^'^^ 

They  march  each  by  himself, 

13.5 


('••) 


THE  LAST  CENTURY  OF  PERSIAN  RULE 

They  break  not  their  ranks, 

None  jostles  the  other, 

They  march  each  in  his  path, 

They  fall  upon  the  weapons  without  breaking, 

They  scour  the  city,  they  run  on  the  wall, 

They  climb  up  into  the  houses, 

Like  a  thief  they  enter  the  windows. 

Earth  trembles  before  them, 

Heaven  quakes. 

The  sun  and  the  moon  become  dark. 

And  the  stars  withdraw  their  shining; 

And  Jehovah  uttereth  his  voice  before  his  army, 

For  his  host  is  exceedingly  great. 

Yea,  mighty  is  he  who  performs  his  word, 

For  great  is  the  day  of  Jehovah, 

It  is  very  terrible,  who  can  abide  it? 

But  now  this  is  the  oracle  of  Jehovah: 

Turn  ye  to  me  with  all  your  heart, 

And  with  fasting  and  weeping  and  mourning. 

Rend  your  hearts  and  not  your  garments, 

And  turn  to  Jehovah  your  God; 

For  he  indeed  is  gracious  and  merciful. 

Slow  to  anger  and  plenteous  in  love. 

And  relenteth  of  the  evil. 

Who  knows  but  he  will  turn  and  relent. 

And  leave  a  blessing  behind  him, 

A  cereal  and  drink-offering  for  Jehovah  your  God? 

Blow  a  horn  in  Zion, 
Sanctify  a  fast,  summon  an  assembly. 
Gather  the  people,  make  holy  the  congregation, 
Assemble  the  old  men, 

Gather  the  children,  and  the  infants  at  the  breast. 
Let  the  bridegroom  come  forth  from  his  chamber. 
And  the  bride  from  her  bridal  tent. 
Between  the  porch  and  the  altar, 
Let  the  priests,  the  ministers  of  Jehovah,  weep  aloud, 
Let  them  say,  Spare,  0  Jehovah,  thy  people, 
136 


THE  LAST  CENTURY  OF  PERSIAN  RULE 

And  make  not  thine  heritage  an  object  of  reproach, 
For  the  heathen  to  mock  them. 

Why  should  it  be  said  among  the  nations,  Where  is 
their  God? 

Then  Jehovah  became  jealous  for  his  land,  and  took  pity  g.jeho- 
upon  his  people,  l^^'^%l^ 

And  Jehovah  answered  and  said  to  his  people,  to  t^he 

Behold,  I  will  send  you  com,  and  wine,  and  oil,  Upns  of 

And  ye  shall  be  satisfied  therewith;  pil^^°' 

I  will  not  make  you  again  an  object  of  reproach  among  the  ("  ") 

nations, 
I  will  remove  far  from  you  the  northern  foe, 
And  I  will  drive  him  into  a  land  barren  and  desolate, 
His  van  to  the  eastern  sea, 
And  his  rear  to  the  western  sea. 
And  a  stench  from  him  shall  arise. 

Fear  not,  O  land,  exult,  •>  9.  His 

And  rejoice  for  Jehovah  hath  done  great  things.  fj^^^' 

Fear  not,  0  beasts  of  the  field,  th^t 

For  the  pastures  of  the  wilderness  are  putting  forth  new  fiefds 
grass,  "'^^^'^ 

For  the  trees  bear  their  fruit. 

Fig  tree  and  vine  yield  their  strength.  t""-«j 

Be  glad,  then,  ye  sons  of  Zion, 
And  rejoice  in  Jehovah  your  God, 
For  he  hath  given  you  the  early  rain  in  just  measure, 
And  poured  down  upon  you  the  winter  rain. 
And  sent  the  latter  rain  as  before. 
The  threshing  floors  shall  be  full  of  grain. 
And  the  vats  shall  overflow  with  new  wine  and  oil. 

I  will  make  restoration  to  you  for  the  years  which  the   10.  i^e- 

swarmer  hath  eaten,  p^m-"* 

The  devourer,  the  destroyer,  and  the  shearer,  and'the 

My  great  army  which  I  sent  among  you,  sense  of 

And  ye  shall  eat  your  food  and  be  satisfied,  vlh°3 

And  praise  the  name  of  Jehovah  your  God,  p^- 

Who  hath  dealt  so  wonderfully  by  you,  (»■") 
137 


agum 

be 

fruitful 


7-) 


THE  LAST  CENTURY  OF  PERSIAN  RULE 

And  ye  shall  know  that  I  am  in  the  midst  of  Israel, 
That  I  am  Jehovah  your  God  and  none  else, 
And  my  people  shall  nevermore  be  abashed. 

And  it  shall  come  to  pass  afterwards, 

That  I  will  pour  out  my  spirit  upon  all  flesh, 

And  your  sons  and  your  daughters  shall  prophesy, 

Your  old  men  shall  dream  dreams. 

Your  young  men  shall  see  visions. 

And  even  upon  thy  male  and  female  slaves. 

In  those  days  I  will  pour  out  my  spirit. 

When  Eliashib  the  high  priest  was  dead,  his  son  Judas 
succeeded  him  in  the  high  priesthood.  Then,  when  he  was 
dead,  his  son  Johanan  assumed  that  dignity.  It  was  on  his 
account  that  Bagoses,  the  general  of  Artaxerxes  [Mnemon], 
desecrated  the  temple  and  imposed  tribute  on  the  Jews,  that 
at  public  expense  they  should  pay  for  every  lamb  fifty  shekels. 
Anirxi,  The  reason  for  this  was  as  follows :  Jeshua  was  the  brother 
of  Johanan.  Bagoses,  who  was  Jeshua's  friend,  promised 
to  secure  for  him  the  high  priesthood.  Trusting,  therefore, 
in  this  support,  Jeshua  quarrelled  with  Johanan  in  the 
temple  and  so  provoked  his  brother  that,  in  his  anger, 
Johanan  slew  him.  On  this  account  the  people  were  en- 
slaved and  the  temple  desecrated  by  the  Persians.  For  when 
Bagoses,  the  general  of  Artaxerxes,  knew  that  Johanan,  the 
high  priest  of  the  Jews  had  slain  his  own  brother  Jeshua  in 
the  temple,  he  immediately  came  against  the  Jews  and  began 
in  anger  to  say  to  them,  Have  you  dared  commit  a  murder 
in  your  temple!  And  when  he  attempted  to  go  into  the 
temple  they  tried  to  prevent  him  doing  so;  but  he  said  to 
them,  Am  I  not  purer  than  he  who  was  slain  in  the  temple? 
And  when  he  had  said  these  words,  he  went  into  the  temple. 
Thus  Bagoses  made  use  of  this  pretext  and  punished  the 
Jews  seven  years  for  the  murder  of  Jeshua. 

Now  when  Johanan  had  departed  this  life,  his  son  Jaddua 
succeeded  to  the  high  priesthood.  He  had  a  brother  whose 
name  was  Manasseh.  And  there  was  a  certain  Sanballat 
who  was  sent  to  Samaria  by  Darius,  the  last  king  of  Per- 
sia.    This  man,  knowing  that  Jerusalem  was  a  famous  city 

138 


THE  LAST  CENTURY  OF  PERSIAN  RULE 

and  that  its  kings  had  given  great  trouble  to  the  Assyrians 
and  the  people  of  Coele-Syria,  willingly  gave  his  daughter, 
whose  name  was  Nicaso,  in  marriage  to  Manasseh,  think- 
ing that  this  marriage  alliance  would  be  a  pledge  that  the 
nation  of  the  Jews  would  continue  their  good  will  toward 
him. 

The  elders  of  Jerusalem,  complaining  loudly  that  the  u.iiis 
brother  of  Jaddua,  the  high  priest,  though  married  to  a  ^on"'' 
foreigner,  was  sharing  with  him  the  high  priesthood,  took  ^'^°"^ 
sides  against  Jaddua ;  for  they  regarded  this  man's  marriage  sa[em 
as  an  encouragement  to  those  who  were  eager  to  transgress   '*"*  '^ 
by  marrying  foreign  wives  and  that  this  would  be  the  be- 
ginning of  a  closer  association  with  foreigners.     Therefore 
they  commanded  Manasseh  to  divorce  his  wife  or  else  not 
to  approach  the  altar.     The  high  priest  himself  joined  with 
the  people  in  their  indignation  and  drove  his  brother  from 
the  altar. 

Then  Manasseh  went  to  his  father-in-law,  Sanballat,  and  i5.  , 
told  him  that,  although  he  loved  his  daughter,  Nicaso,  he  was  o  "u'e 
not  willing  to  be  deprived  on  her  account  of  his  priestly  f^^''^'^ 
dignity,  since  it  was  the  greatest  dignity  in  their  nation  and  temple 
had  always  continued  in  the  same  family.     Thereupon  San-  prfist- 
ballat  promised  him  not  only  to  preserve  for  him  the  honor  ^°?,'^ 
of  his  priesthood  but  also  to  procure  for  him  the  power  and 
dignity  of  a  high  priest  and  to  make  him  governor  of  all  the 
places  which  he  himself  ruled,  if  he  would  retain  his  daughter 
as  his  wife.     He  also  told  him  that  he  would  build  him  a 
temple  like  that  at  Jerusalem  upon  Mount  Gerizim,  which  is 
the  highest  of  all  the  mountains  in  Samaria.     Moreover  he 
promised  that  he  would  do  this  with  the  approval  of  Darius, 
the  king.     Manasseh,  being  elated  with  these  promises,  re- 
mained with  Sanballat,  thinking  that  he  would  gain  a  high 
priesthood  as  the  gift  from  Darius,  for  Sanballat  was  then 
well  advanced  in  years.     Now  there  was  a  great  disturbance 
among  the  people  of  Jerusalem  because  many  of  the  priests 
and  Levites  were  entangled  in  such  marriages,  for  they  all 
revolted  to  Manasseh,  and  Sanballat  offered  them  money  and 
distributed  among  them  land  for  cultivation  and  dwelling 
places  also.     He  did  all  this  in  order  in  every  way  to  gratify 
his  son-in-law. 

139 


THE  LAST  CENTURY  OF  PERSIAN  RULE 

L  Prosperity  of  the  Judean  Community.  Behind  their  restored 
■u-alls  the  Jews  of  Jerusalem  enjoyed  a  sense  of  security  and  peace  that 
had  not  been  theirs  since  the  days  of  Josiah.  At  last  they  were  free  to 
develop  the  limited  resources  of  little  Judah  and  gradually  to  extend 
their  territory  northwestward  over  the  fertile  plain  of  Sharon.  At  the 
most  their  numbers  and  territory  w^ere  small.  The  memories  of  their 
glorious  past  and  their  hopes  for  the  future  were  their  chief  inspiration. 
The  belief  that  in  supporting  faithfully  the  service  of  the  temple  and  in 
conforming  to  the  definite  demands  of  the  ritual  they  were  winning 
Jehovah's  favor  was  to  them  an  unfailing  source  of  comfort  and  thank- 
fulness. In  the  rich  services  of  the  temple  and  in  the  contemplation  of 
Jehovah's  character  and  deeds  they  found  true  joy.  These  feelings  are 
expressed  in  certain  of  the  psalms,  as,  for  example,  Psalm  36,  which 
probably  comes  from  this  period.  In  their  weakness  they  looked  up  in 
confidence  and  gratitude  to  Jehovah  who  ruled  supreme  in  the  heavens, 
and  who  was  able  and  eager  to  preserve  those  who  "put  their  trust  in 
the  shadow  of  his  wings."  Their  one  prayer  was  that  his  loving-kind- 
ness would  continue  to  protect  them. 

II.  The  Growth  of  the  Psalter.  Nehemiah's  work  apparently  gave 
an  impulse  not  only  to  the  development  of  the  law  and  the  temple  ritual, 
but  also  inspired  poets  to  voice  their  own  feelings  and  those  of  the  com- 
munity in  certain  of  the  psalms  now  found  in  the  Psalter.  It  also  en- 
couraged them  to  collect  the  earlier  religious  songs  of  their  race.  The 
result  of  their  work  is  the  first  edition  of  the  Hebrew  Psalter.  In  its 
present  form  the  Psalter,  like  the  Pentateuch,  is  divided  into  five  books 
with  a  general  introduction  consisting  of  Psalms  1  and  2  and  a  conclud- 
ing doxology  (Ps.  150).  At  the  end  of  each  of  these  divisions  are  shorter 
doxologies  or  brief  epilogues  (e.  g.,  41"  72'"  SD^^*  lOG**).  The  Psalter 
itself  is  a  library  containing  a  great  variety  of  poems  written  at  different 
periods,  from  many  different  points  of  view  and  by  many  different  poets. 
Like  the  Priestly  Code  and  the  book  of  Proverbs,  it  consists  of  a  collec- 
tion of  smaller  collections.  Thus  many  psalms  in  the  first  half  of  the 
Psalter  are  repeated  wholly  or  in  part  in  later  psalms.  Psalm  14,  for 
example,  is  identical  with  Psalm  73,  except  that  in  14  Jehovah  is  used 
as  the  designation  of  the  Deity  and  in  73  Elohim  (or  God). 

The  problem  of  determining  the  date  of  the  individual  psalms  and  of 
the  different  collections  is  exceedingly  difficult,  both  because  the  super- 
scriptions were  clearly  added  by  later  editors  who  thought  thereby  to 
connect  the  psalm  with  an  earlier  writer  or  historic  incident,  and  be- 
cause the  psalms  themselves  contain  few  historical  allusions.     A  great 

140 


THE  GROWTH  OF  THE  PSALTER 

majority  of  them  reflect  the  teachings  of  the  pre-exilic  prophets  or,  like 
the  book  of  Proverbs,  come  from  the  lips  of  the  sages  and  deal  with  uni- 
versal human  problems.  Some  were  written  by  priests  or  Levites  for 
use  in  connection  with  the  song  service  of  the  temple.  Because  of  this 
timeless  quality,  however,  an  appreciation  of  them  does  not  depend  upon 
an  exact  knowledge  of  their  authorship  or  historical  background.  It  is 
possible  that  a  few  of  the  psalms  in  the  first  part  of  the  Psalter  come 
from  the  pre-exilic  period,  but  the  great  majority  reflect  the  problems, 
the  hopes,  the  fears,  and  the  trials  of  the  faithful  who  lived  under  the 
shadow  of  the  second  temple.  While  the  superscriptions  clearly  do  not 
come  from  the  original  psalmists  themselves,  they  do  record  the  conclu- 
sions of  the  editors  who  made  the  earliest  collections.  The  oft-recurring 
title  "Psalm  to  David"  either  means  that  by  the  editor  it  was  attributed 
to  David  as  the  author,  or  is  a  general  designation  of  psalms  that  were 
recognized  to  be  comparatively  early.  The  two  great  Davidic  collec- 
tions, 3-41  and  51-72,  were  apparently  collected  not  long  after  the  re- 
building of  the  walls  of  Jerusalem.  They  are  deeply  influenced  by  the 
inspiring  teachings  of  the  II  Isaiah.  They  are  remarkably  free  from 
that  ceremonialism  which  became  a  powerful  force  in  Judaism  during 
the  last  century  of  the  Persian  rule.  Psalm  5V^'  ",  for  example,  echoes 
the  noble  ethical  teachings  of  the  great  prophets: 

Thou  desirest  not  sacrifice,  else  would  I  give  it, 

Thou  delightest  not  in  burnt  offering, 

The  sacrifice  of  God  is  a  broken  heart, 

A  broken  and  a  contrite  heart,  O  God,  thou  wilt  not  despise. 

They  represent,  therefore,  the  oldest  edition  of  the  Psalter  and  the  songs 
which  were  probably  sung  by  the  temple  singers  and  the  people  as  they 
went  up  to  the  temple  on  the  great  feast  days  during  the  closing  years  of 
the  Persian  period. 

III.  The  Prophecy  of  Joel.  For  a  brief  moment  the  clear  light  of 
contemporary  prophecy  is  turned  upon  the  Judean  community  by  the 
little  book  of  Joel.  The  immediate  occasion  was  the  invasion  of  a  great 
swarm  of  locusts  which  swept  into  Judea  either  from  the  desert  or  from 
the  mountains  in  the  north.  It  contams  in  3'  the  first  Old  Testament 
reference  to  the  Greeks.  From  3^  it  is  evident  that  the  Jewish  race  has 
already  been  widely  scattered.  In  3'  the  hope  is  expressed  that  the 
time  will  soon  come  when  strangers  shall  no  longer  pass  through  Jeru- 
salem. The  temple,  however,  and  the  city  walls  (2»)  have  already  been 
rebuilt,  indicating  that  the  prophecy  followed  the  work  of  Nehemiah. 

141 


THE  LAST  CENTURY  OF  PERSIAN  RULE 

The  priests  are  exceedingly  prominent  in  the  life  of  the  community,  and 
Joel,  though  a  projihet,  places  great  emphasis  upon  the  importance  of 
the  ritual.  \Mien  the  community  is  threatened  by  the  swarms  of  locusts, 
whose  advance  he  describes  with  dramatic  imagery,  he  calls  upon  the 
people  to  sanctify  a  fast  and  to  summon  an  assembly,  and  commands 
the  priests  to  cry  aloud  to  Jehovah  for  deliverance. 

IV.  Hopes  of  the  Jews.  In  his  prophecy  Joel  has  given  a  very  com- 
plete description  of  the  hopes  which  the  people  entertained  regarding 
the  coming  day  of  Jehovah.  It  is  the  same  day  of  Jehovah  that  Zeph- 
aniah  described  (§  LXXXP)  and  yet  the  portrait  is  very  different.  A 
divine  judgment  is  to  be  pronounced,  not  upon  Jehovah's  people,  but 
upon  their  foes.  Here  Joel  reveals  the  influence  of  Ezekiel's  graphic 
descriptions  found  in  the  thirty-eighth  and  thirty-ninth  chapters  of  his 
prophecy.  Vividly  he  describes  the  advance  of  Israel's  hereditary  foes. 
With  full  panoply  of  war  they  are  pictured  as  advancing  to  the  Valley 
of  Jehoshaphat,  the  valley  of  judgment  (popularly  identified  with  the 
Kidron),  where  Jehovah  is  to  pass  sentence  upon  them.  Then  suddenly, 
as  the  harvester  puts  the  sickle  in  the  grain,  they  shall  be  cut  down  and 
utterly  destroyed.  Also  in  the  prophet's  imagination  above  this  carnage 
rises  Jerusalem,  an  impregnable  fortress  for  the  people  of  Israel,  holy 
and  no  longer  polluted  by  the  presence  of  heathen  invaders.  Peace  and 
prosperity  shall  then  be  the  lot  of  Jehovah's  people.  Above  all  he  will 
pour  out  his  purifying,  enlightening  spirit  upon  all  classes,  so  that 
young  and  old,  slave  and  free,  shall  be  inspired  by  the  consciousness  of 
his  message  and  presence  in  their  hearts. 

V.  Rule  of  the  High  Priests.  The  few  facts  that  have  been  pre- 
served regarding  the  external  history  of  the  Judean  community  during 
the  last  century  of  the  Persian  rule  are  in  striking  contrast  to  the  inner 
life  and  hopes  of  the  people.  At  their  head  were  the  high  priests,  whose 
names  we  know,  Eliashib,  Johanan,  and  Jaddua.  They  constituted  a 
hereditary  aristocracy  intrenched  in  the  temple,  which  controlled  not 
only  the  religious  but  also  the  civil  life  of  the  Jews.  Like  all  hierarchies 
it  lacked  the  corrective  influence  of  a  superior  civil  authority.  The  one 
safeguard  of  popular  liberties,  however,  was  the  written  law,  which  was 
fast  becoming  the  absolute  authority  in  the  life  of  the  community.  To 
it  the  people  could  appeal  even  against  the  decisions  of  the  priests.  It 
therefore  kept  alive  that  inherited  democratic  spirit  which  had  been  the 
priceless  possession  of  Israel  through  all  its  history. 

There  is  every  reason  for  accepting  the  detailed  account  which  Jose- 
phus  has  given  of  the  quarrel  between  the  high  priest  Johanan  and  his 

142 


RULE  OF  THE  HIGH  PRIESTS 

brother  Joshua  which  resulted  in  the  murder  of  the  latter  within  the 
sacred  temple  precincts.  Such  an  opportunity  would  naturally  be  im- 
proved by  the  greedy  Persian  oflBcial  to  impose  an  onerous  tux  upon  the 
Jews.  The  Elephantine  letter  establishes  the  fact  that  Johanan  was 
high  priest  in  411  B.C.  and  that  Baghohi  (of  which  Bagoses  is  the  Jewish 
equivalent)  was  the  Persian  satrap.  It  thus  directly  confirms  the  testi- 
mony of  Josephus.  References  in  late  Greek  writings  (Solinus  XXXV, 
6;  Syncellus  I,  486)  suggest  that  the  Jews  about  350  B.C.  were  involved 
with  the  Phoenicians  in  the  rebellion  against  Persia.  These  historians 
state  that  at  this  time  Jericho  was  captured  and  destroyed  and  that  a 
part  of  the  Jewish  people  were  transported  to  the  province  of  Hyrcania 
at  the  south  of  the  Caspian  Sea.  The  rebellion  was  instigated  by  Tachos, 
the  ruler  of  Egypt,  who  about  362  not  only  shook  off  the  rule  of  Persia, 
but  invaded  Syria  and  stirred  up  the  Phoenicians  to  defy  the  Persian 
king.  Artaxerxes  III,  popularly  known  as  Ochus,  proved,  however, 
the  last  ruler  who  was  able  to  revive  the  waning  power  of  the  Persian 
Empire.  At  his  accession  he  slew  all  the  members  of  the  royal  family, 
and  throughout  his  reign  (358-337  B.C.)  he  trusted  chiefly  to  the  un- 
sheathed sword  to  maintain  his  authority.  In  346  B.C.  he  finally  suc- 
ceeded in  collecting  a  huge  army  with  which  he  invaded  Syria  and  be- 
sieged Sidon.  Its  king  betrayed  his  city  into  the  hands  of  the  Persians, 
only  to  be  murdered  by  the  treacherous  Ochus.  The  citizens  of  Sidon, 
recognizing  that  they  would  receive  no  mercy  from  the  hands  of  their 
conqueror,  shut  themselves  up  in  their  homes  and  then  burned  them  over 
their  heads.  According  to  the  Greek  historians  forty  thousand  Phoeni- 
cians perished  in  this  revolt. 

VI.  The  Date  of  the  Samaritan  Schism.  Josephus  has  given  an 
unusually  full  and  detailed  account  of  the  final  schism  between  the  Jews 
and  Samaritans.  He  dates  it  under  the  high  priesthood  of  Jaddua,  who 
died  shortly  after  the  close  of  the  Persian  period.  He  implies,  therefore, 
that  the  schism  took  place  not  long  before  332  B.C.,  when  Alexander  the 
Great  conquered  Palestine.  This  is  also  in  keeping  with  the  fact  that 
the  Elephantine  letter  written  in  411  B.C.  knows  nothing  of  a  division 
between  Jew  and  Gentile.  The  fact  that  at  the  time  of  the  division  the 
defecting  priests  took  from  Jerusalem  the  Pentateuch  in  its  final  form 
strongly  confirms  the  conclusion  (as  Professor  Torrey  has  pointed  out 
in  his  Ezra  Studies,  pp.  324-330)  that  the  Sanballat  who  ruled  over  the 
Samaritan  community  was  not  the  contemporary  of  Nehemiah,  but  his 
grandson,  who  as  an  old  man  was  ruling  in  Samaria  at  the  time  when 
Alexander  conquered  the  East. 

143 


THE  LAST  CENTURY  OF  PERSIAN  RULE 

VII.  The  Nature  and  Consequences  of  the  Schism.  The  schism 
l)etween  Jew  and  Samaritan  was  but  a  revival  of  the  ancient  rivalry 
which  dated  from  the  days  when  the  Israelites  had  first  settled  in  Canaan. 
The  destruction  of  Samaria  in  722  and  the  strong  policy  of  Josiah  had 
apparently  led  the  Samaritans  to  look  to  the  temple  at  Jerusalem  as  the 
chief  sanctuary  of  the  land.  Shechem,  however,  and  Mount  Gerizim, 
which  rises  abruptly  on  the  south,  enjoyed  traditions  which  dated  from 
the  earliest  days  of  Israel's  history.  The  sacred  oak  and  altar  at 
Shechem  figured  even  in  the  patriarchal  period.  At  the  temple  of  Baal- 
berith  in  Shechem  apparently  both  Canaanites  and  Israelites  worshipped 
during  the  days  of  the  settlement.  According  to  the  Samaritan  version 
of  Deuteronomy  24*,  Mount  Gerizim,  not  Ebal  or  Jerusalem,  was  the 
place  where  the  Israelites,  after  entering  Canaan,  were  first  commanded 
to  rear  an  altar  to  Jehovah,  and  to  inscribe  upon  it  the  laws  given  to 
Moses.  Even  in  the  Jewish  version  of  Deuteronomy  IP'  and  27" 
Mount  Gerizim  is  the  mountain  of  blessing.  In  the  light  of  these  pas- 
sages such  commands  as,  for  example,  that  in  Deuteronomy  12^- ' 
would  naturally  be  interpreted  by  the  Samaritans  as  a  reference  to 
Gerizim  rather  than  to  Jerusalem.  The  destruction  of  the  Judean 
capital  and  temple  gave  a  great  incentive  to  the  revival  of  these  ancient 
traditions  and  a  new  prestige  to  the  northern  sanctuary.  Until  the 
close  of  the  Persian  period,  however,  the  Samaritans  evidently  regarded 
Jerusalem  as  an  important  shrine  and  worshipped  there  side  by  side 
with  the  Jews.  The  ultimate  schism  appears  to  have  come  as  a  result 
of  the  growing  jealousy  with  which  certain  of  the  Jews  regarded  foreign 
marriages.  The  marriage  of  Manasseh,  the  brother  of  Jaddua  the  high 
priest,  to  Nicaso,  the  daughter  of  Sanballat  II,  and  his  ultimate  expul- 
sion by  the  Jews  blew  into  a  flame  the  smouldering  jealousy  and  opposi- 
tion that  had  long  existed  between  the  two  communities.  As  Josephus 
recounts,  Sanballat,  in  order  to  satisfy  his  son-in-law,  ceded  lands  and 
special  rights  to  him  and  to  the  other  Jerusalem  priests,  who  were  at- 
tracted by  these  offers,  and  ultimately  built  the  famous  temple  on  Mount 
Gerizim  over  which  Manasseh  and  his  descendants  presided.  In  many 
ways  the  temple  and  service  on  Mount  Gerizim  appear  to  have  been 
duplicates  of  those  at  Jerusalem.  The  same  law  was  recognized  by 
both  communities;  they  shared  together  the  same  traditions  and  the 
same  ideals;  and  yet  their  subsequent  history  illustrates  the  psycho- 
logical truth  that  of  all  forms  of  hatred  that  between  brothers  is  the  most 
venomous  and  lasting.  The  bitter  rivalry  and  growing  hatred  that  re- 
sulted from  this  act  are  reflected  even  in  the  wisdom  teachings  of  Ben 

144 


NATURE  AND  CONSEQUENCES   OF  THE  SCIIIS.M 

Sira  (B.  Sir.  47^'-  "•  ").  They  also  fundamentally  color  the  writings 
of  the  Chronicler.  The  strenuous  efforts  that  he  made  to  discounte- 
nance the  claims  of  the  Samaritans  reveals  the  intensity  of  the  feud  even 
in  the  Greek  period  (cf.  II  Chron.  IP'"").  His  zeal  in  trying  to  prove 
that  the  rebuilders  of  the  Jerusalem  temple  were  of  Jewish  extraction 
was  doubtless  inspired  by  the  Samaritan  charge  that  during  the  Baby- 
lonian and  Persian  periods  they  had  freely  intermarried  with  the  heathen 
population  of  the  land.  He  was  compelled  to  admit  that  even  the  high 
priestly  families  had  been  guilty  of  this  sin,  but  asserted  that  the  foreign 
wives  were  later  divorced  or  else  the  offenders  were  expelled  from  Jeru- 
salem. In  the  light  of  the  oldest  records  it  appears  that  the  Samaritans 
were  able  to  establish  almost  as  pure  a  lineage  as  the  Jews.  Naturally 
during  the  succeeding  years  the  ancient  breach  continued  to  widen  until 
it  was  beyond  all  healing. 


Jl^ 


Alex 
aiidei's 
con- 
quests 


THE   GREEK  AND   MACCABEAN   AGE 

§  CIV.     THE  JEWS  UNDER  THEIR  GREEK  RULERS 

/._  Now  after  Alexander  the  Macedonian,  the  son  of  Philip, 

who  came  from  the  land  of  the  Greeks,  had  smitten  Darius 
king  of  the  Persians  and  Medes,  he  reigned  in  his  place  as  the 

(TMac.    first  ruler  of  the  Syrian  kingdom. 

He  fought  many  battles. 

And  won  many  strongholds, 

And  slew  the  kings  of  the  earth; 

He  went  on  to  the  ends  of  the  earth; 

And  took  spoils  from  a  multitude  of  nations. 

And  when  the  earth  was  at  peace  before  him, 

He  was  exalted  and  his  heart  was  lifted  up; 

He  gathered  an  exceedingly  great  army. 

And  ruled  over  countries  and  peoples  and  principalities ; 

And  they  became  tributary  to  him. 

2.  Now  when  Alexander  was  dead,  the  government  was 
?f^jad-  divided  among  his  successors.  It  was  about  this  time  that 
fjos  Jaddua  the  high  priest  died  and  Onias,  his  son,  took  the  high 
Ant.'  priesthood. 

si:  c)  Alexander's  empire  was  divided  among  many :  Antigonus 

gained  possession  of  the  province  of  Asia ;  Seleucus  of  Baby- 

3.  Ion  and  the  surrounding  nations;  Lysimachus  governed  the 
^nP^  Hellespont,  and  Cassander  held  Macedonia;  Ptolemy,  the 
under  ^^^  ^^  Lagus,  got  Egypt.  While  these  princes  ambitiously 
Alex-      contended  with  one  another,  each  for  his  own  kingdom, 

there  were  continual  and  protracted  wars.  And  the  cities 
suffered  and  lost  many  of  their  inhabitants  in  these  days  of 
iTb^)  distress,  so  that  all  Syria  experienced  at  the  hands  of  Ptol- 
emy, the  son  of  Lagus,  the  opposite  of  what  is  implied  by  his 
title  of  saviour.  He  also  captured  Jerusalem  by  means  of 
deceit  and  treachery ;  for,  coming  into  the  city  on  a  sabbath 
day,  as  if  to  offer  sacrifices,  he  without  difficulty  gained  pos- 

146 


ander's 

8UC- 

cessora 
(XII 


THE  JEWS  UNDER  THEIR  GREEK  RULERS 

session  of  the  city,  since  the  Jews  did  not  oppose  him,  for 
they  did  not  suspect  him  to  be  their  enemy,  and  that  day 
they  always  spent  in  rest  and  quietness.  And  when  he  had 
gained  possession  of  it,  he  ruled  over  it  in  a  cruel  manner. 

And  when  Ptolemy  had  taken  many  captives  both  from  4.  Fort- 
the  mountainous  parts  of  Judea  and  the  places  about  Jeru-  oille 
salem  and  Samaria  and  Mount  Gerizim,  he  led  them  all  into  ^"^^  j° 
Egypt  and  settled  them  there.     And  since  he  knew  that  the  urfdfr 
people  of  Jerusalem  were  most  faithful  in  keeping  their  fmy' 
oaths  and  convenants,  he  distributed  many  of  them  among  ^['J-.f.^ 
garrisons.     At  Alexandria  he  gave  them  equal  privileges  as 
citizens  with   the  Macedonians   themselves.     He  also   re- 
quired them  to  take  oath  that  they  would  be  faithful  to  his 
descendants.     And  not  a  few  other  Jews  went  into  Egypt  of 
their  own  accord,  attracted  both  by  the  goodness  of  the  soil 
and  Ptolemy's  generosity.     However,  there  were  disorders 
between  their  descendants  and  the  Samaritans  because  of 
their  resolve  to  preserve  that  manner  of  life  which  was  trans- 
mitted to  them  by  their  forefathers.     They  accordingly  con- 
tended with  each  other;    those  from  Jerusalem  said  that 
their  temple  was  holy  and  they  resolved  to  send  their  sacri- 
fices there,  but  the  Samaritans  were  determined  that  they 
should  be  sent  to  Mount  Gerizim. 

When  Alexander  had  reigned  twelve  years  and  after  him  5.  The 
Ptolemy  Soter  forty  years,  Ptolemy  Philadelphus  next  had  «"  ^" 
the  kingdom  of  Egypt  and  held  it  thirty-nine  years.  f-^Y^^^ 

Now  when  Onias  I.  the  high  priest  died,  his  son  Simon  suc- 
ceeded him.     When  he  died  and  left  only  a  young  son  called  of  the  ^ 
Onias,  Simon's  brother  Eleazer  took  the  high  priesthood,  ^^g^'*** 
After  Eleazar's   death,   his   uncle   Manasseh  assumed  the  pncsu 
priesthood,  and  after  he  died,  Onias  H.  received  that  honor.  4"*-'/ 
This  Onia  was  lacking  in  sense  and  was  a  great  lover  of 
money ;  for  that  reason  he  did  not  pay  the  tax  of  twenty  talents 
of  silver  for  the  people,  which  his  forefathers  had  paid  out  of 
their  own  estates  to  the  kings  of  Egypt.    Thus  he  aroused  the 
anger  of  King  Ptolemy  Euergetes,  the  father  of  Philopator. 
Euergetes  sent  an  ambassador  to  Jerusalem  and  complained 
that  Onias  did  not  pay  the  taxes  and  threatened  that  if  he 
did  not  receive  them,  he  would  parcel  out  their  land  and  send 
soldiers  to  Hve  upon  it.     When  the  Jews  heard  this  message 

147 


THE  JEWS  UNDER  THEIR  GREEK  RULERS 

of  the  king  they  were  filled  with  dismay,  but  Onias  was  so 
avaricious  that  nothing  of  this  kind  made  him  ashamed. 

7.  Rise  There  was  a  certain  Joseph,  young  in  years,  but  of  great 
Joseph  reputation  among  the  people  of  Jerusalem  for  dignity  and 
cof-*^"*  exact  foresight.  His  father's  name  was  Tobias  and  his 
lector  mother  was  the  sister  of  Onias  the  high  priest.  She  informed 
^    ^       him  of  the  coming  of  Ptolemy's  ambassador.     Thereupon 

Joseph  came  to  Jerusalem  and  reproved  Onias  for  not  taking 
thought  for  the  security  of  his  countrymen  and  for  bringing 
the  nation  into  dangers  by  not  paying  this  money.  Onias's 
answer  was  that  he  did  not  care  for  his  authority,  that  he  was 
ready,  if  it  were  possible,  to  lay  down  his  high  priesthood, 
and  that  he  would  not  go  to  the  king,  for  he  cared  nothing 
at  all  about  these  matters.  Joseph  then  asked  him  if  he 
would  give  him  leave  to  go  as  ambassador  on  behalf  of  the 
nation.  He  replied  that  he  would.  So  Joseph  went  down 
from  the  temple  and  treated  Ptolemy's  ambassador  in  a  hos- 
pitable manner.  He  also  presented  him  with  rich  gifts  and 
feasted  him  magnificently  for  many  days  and  then  sent  him 
to  the  king  before  him  and  told  him  that  he  would  soon 
follow  him. 

8.  The  Now  it  happened  that  at  this  time  all  the  principal  men  and 
oFhiJ  rulers  of  the  cities  of  Syria  and  Phoenicia  went  up  to  bid  for 
dacity  ^^®  taxes;  for  every  year  the  king  sold  them  to  the  most 
(»b.  to-.)  powerful  men  of  each  city.     And  when  the  day  came  on 

which  the  king  was  to  let  the  farming  of  the  taxes  of  the 
cities,  the  taxes  of  Coele-Syria,  Phoenicia,  Judea  and  Sama- 
ria amounted  altogether  to  eight  thousand  talents.     There- 
upon Joseph  accused  the  bidders  of  having  agreed  together 
to  estimate  the  value  of  the  taxes  at  too  low  a  rate  and  he 
promised  that  he  would  give  twice  as  much  for  them,  and 
for  those  who  did  not  pay  he  would  send  the  king  their  entire 
possessions,  for  this  privilege  was  sold  together  with  the 
taxes.     The  king  was  pleased  to  hear  this  offer,  and  because 
it  increased  his  revenues  he  said  he  would  confirm  the  sale 
of  the  taxes  to  him. 
tebh^sh-       And  Joseph  took  with  him  two  thousand  soldiers  from  the 
hirau-^  king,  for  he  desired  to  have  assistance  in  order  to  compel 
thority    those  who  refused  in  the  city  to  pay.     And  when  the  people 
1.)  '  *'    of  Askelon  refused  to  pay  anything,  he  seized  about  twenty 

148 


JOSEPHUS'S  HISTORIES 

of  their  principal  men  and  slew  them,  and  gathered  what  they 
had  and  sent  it  all  to  the  king  and  informed  him  what  he  had 
done.  Ptolemy  admired  the  spirit  of  the  man,  commended 
him  for  what  he  had  done  and  gave  him  permission  to 
do  as  he  pleased.  By  these  means  he  amassed  great  wealth 
and  made  vast  profits  by  this  farming  of  taxes.  And  he 
made  use  of  the  wealth  he  had  thus  secured  in  order  to 
support  his  authority.  This  good  fortune  he  enjoyed  for 
twenty-two  years ;  and  he  became  the  father  of  seven  sons 
by  one  wife.  He  had  also  another  son  whose  name  was 
Hyrcanus. 

Now  in  the  reign  of  Antiochus  the  Great,  who  ruled  over  lo  Mi». 
all  Asia,  the  Jews,  as  well  as  the  inhabitants  of  Coele-Syria,   [Z^es 
suffered  greatly,  and  their  land  was  sorely  harassed,  for  j[,^^„ 
while  Antiochus  was  at  war  with  Ptolemy  Philopator  and  his  (wn-. 
son  Ptolemy,  who  was  called  Epiphanes,  these  nations  suf-  '^s^^if 
fered  equally  both  when  he  was  defeated  and  when  he  was 
victorious.     So  they  were  like  a  ship  in  the  storm  which  is 
tossed  by  the  waves  on  both  sides. 

But  at  length  when  Antiochus  had  beaten  Ptolemy  he  n. 
seized  Judea.     And  when  Philopator  was  dead,  his  son  sent  of  ^'ai^ 
out  against  the  inhabitants  of  Coele-Syria  a  great  army  under  f^^^^ 
Scopas,  general  of  his  forces,  and  took  many  of  their  cities  Syrian 
and  especially  our  people,  who,  when  he  attacked  them,   (3?c^ 
went  over  to  him.     But  soon  afterwards  Antiochus  over- 
came Scopas  in  a  battle   fought  at  the  fountains  of  the 
Jordan  and  destroyed  a  great  part  of  his  army.     And  after- 
wards, when  Antiochus  subdued  those  cities  of  Coele-Syria 
which  Scopas  had  captured,  and  Samaria  among  them,  the 
Jews  of  their  own  accord  went  over  to  him  and  received  him 
into  Jerusalem  and  gave  plentiful  provisions  to  all  his  army 
and  readily  assisted  him  when  he  besieged  the  garrison 
which  was  in  the  citadel  at  Jerusalem. 

I.  Josephus's  Histories.  The  Greek  period  began  with  Alexan- 
der's conquest  of  Palestine  in  332  and  extended  to  the  Maecabean  up- 
rising in  168  B.C.  For  the  external  history  of  this  period  the  writings 
of  the  historian  Josephus  are  the  chief  sources.  This  famous  Jewish 
writer  was  born  in  37  a.d.,  and  apparently  lived  till  about  the  close  of 
the  reign  of  Domitian  in  96.     According  to  his  own  testimony  he  waa 

149 


(3-—) 


THE   JEWS  UNDER  THEIR  GREEK  RULERS 

the  son  of  a  priest  named  Mattathiah.  Until  he  was  sixteen  he  studied 
under  the  Jewish  rabbis.  He  then  spent  three  years  with  the  Jewish 
sect  known  as  the  Essenes.  At  the  age  of  nineteen  he  joined  the  party 
of  the  Pharisees.  His  point  of  view  in  general  is  that  of  this  dominant 
popular  party.  He  was  able  to  read  Latin,  but  wrote  his  histories  in 
Greek.  At  the  age  of  twenty-six  he  went  to  Rome  where  he  spent  three 
years.  Returning  to  Palestine  at  the  beginning  of  the  great  rebellion 
against  Rome,  he  was  appointed  revolutionary  governor  of  the  important 
province  of  Galilee.  The  appointment  was  unfortunate,  for  he  proved 
both  incompetent  and  unreliable.  In  67  a.d.  he  and  his  followers 
were  shut  up  by  Vespasian  in  the  Galilean  city,  Jotapata.  During  the 
siege  he  vainly  tried  to  desert  to  the  enemy.  At  the  fall  of  the  city  he 
was  captured,  but  his  life  was  spared  by  ^'espasian.  In  time  he  ingra- 
tiated himself  with  Titus  and  also  incurred  the  hostility  of  his  country- 
men by  tr}ang  to  persuade  them  to  lay  down  their  arms.  He  spent  the 
latter  part  of  his  life  in  Rome,  devoting  himself  to  study  and  writing. 
As  a  result  of  his  long  residence  at  Rome  under  the  patronage  of  the 
Roman  emperors,  he  was  powerfully  influenced  by  the  Greek  and 
Roman  philosophical  schools. 

Josephus  was  the  great  apologist  of  his  race.  His  chief  aims  in  writing 
his  histories  were:  (1)  to  excuse  his  own  acts  in  connection  with  the 
great  rebellion;  (2)  to  show  why  the  overwhelming  calamity  had  over- 
taken his  race;  and  (3)  to  answer  the  attack  of  their  Gentile  foes  by 
tracing  the  remarkable  history  of  his  people,  and  by  presenting  in  at- 
tractive form  their  beliefs,  institutions,  and  laws.  Of  his  two  great  his- 
torical works  the  one  entitled  The  Jemsh  War  was  issued  probably 
between  75  and  79  a.d.  It  opens  with  the  beginnings  of  the  Maccabean 
struggle,  and  traces  the  history,  with  increasing  detail,  to  the  destruction 
of  Jerusalem  and  the  suppression  of  the  Jewish  revolt  at  Gyrene,  two 
or  three  years  before  the  book  was  written.  His  second  great  work  was 
issued  in  93  a.d.  under  the  title  of  The  Antiquities  of  the  Jews.  In 
twenty  books  it  traces  Israel's  history  from  the  earliest  beginnings  to 
the  opening  years  of  the  Jewish  war  (68  a.d.).  The  first  half  of  this 
extensive  history  is  based  on  the  author's  free  paraphrase  of  the  Greek 
version  of  the  Old  Testament.  For  the  latter  half  he  draws  largely 
from  the  apocryphal  book  of  I  Maccabees  and  from  the  writings  of  con- 
temporary Greek  and  Jewish  historians.  Chief  among  these  are  Polyb- 
ius,  Nicolaus  of  Damascus,  and  Strabo.  At  certain  points,  where  ear- 
lier sources  fail  him,  he  employs  popular  romances  and  late  traditions. 
The  result  is  that  the  different  parts  of  his  history  are  of  widely  varying 

150 


JOSEPHUS'S  HISTORIES 

values.  All  must  be  carefully  tested  by  the  canons  of  historical  criti- 
cism. After  due  allowance  has  been  made  for  his  apologetic  purpose 
and  his  well-known  tendencies,  a  large  and  valuable  body  of  historical 
facts  remain  with  which  it  is  possible  at  many  otherwise  obscure  points 
to  reconstruct  the  course  of  Israel's  history. 

II.  Alexander's  Conquests.  In  many  ways  Alexander's  conquest 
was  the  most  significant  and  far-reaching  event  in  the  history  of  Asia. 
The  causes  of  this  great  movement  were,  first,  the  fact  that  the  limited 
territory  of  Greece  and  Macedonia  gave  to  the  powerful  Hellenic  civili- 
zation litde  opportunity  for  local  expansion.  Compelled,  therefore,  to 
break  these  narrow  bonds,  it  naturally  spread  in  the  direction  of  least 
resistance.  In  the  second  place  the  decadent  Persian  Empire,  with  its 
fabulous  riches  and  almost  limitless  plains,  was  a  loadstone  that  lured 
on  Greek  adventurers  to  attempt  feats  that  seemed  incredible.  The 
third  reason  was  Alexander's  inherited  lust  for  conquest.  His  father, 
Philip  of  Macedon,  had  long  been  accumulating  the  resources  which 
made  it  possible  for  his  son  to  realize  his  ambitious  dreams.  The  fourth 
reason  was  Alexander's  desire  to  make  the  world  more  glorious  by  the 
diffusion  of  Hellenic  culture,  ideas,  and  institutions  and  by  binding  all 
races  together  into  one  great,  harmonious  family.  His  brilliant  con- 
quests are  a  familiar  chapter  in  the  world's  history.  At  Issus,  at  the 
northeastern  end  of  the  Mediterranean,  he  won,  in  333  B.C.,  the  decisive 
battle  which  left  him  in  possession  of  the  western  part  of  the  huge  Per- 
sian Empire.  By  332  he  was  master  of  Palestine.  Tyre,  the  commercial 
mistress  of  the  eastern  Mediterranean,  and  Gaza,  the  key  to  Egypt, 
alone  offered  resistance.  The  Persian  kings  by  their  onerous  taxation 
and  cruel  policy  had  completely  destroyed  the  loyalty  of  their  western 
subjects.  In  the  symbolic  pictures  of  the  book  of  Daniel  Alexander  is 
regarded  as  the  "fourth  beast,  terrible  and  fearful  and  exceedingly 
strong.  And  it  had  great  iron  teeth.  It  devoured  and  broke  in  pieces, 
and  stamped  the  rest  with  its  feet"  (7"-  "•  8*"*).  Josephus  has  preserved 
a  popular  tradition  regarding  the  meeting  between  Alexander  and  the 
white-robed  Jerusalem  priests  and  the  homage  paid  by  the  conqueror 
to  the  God  of  the  Jews.  It  bears  on  its  face  evidence  of  its  unhistorical 
character.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  first  goal  of  Alexander's  conquest 
was  the  rich  land  of  Egypt.  Not  being  possessed  of  a  navy,  he  entered 
it  through  its  one  vulnerable  point,  the  Wady  Tumilat,  that  ran  from 
the  Isthmus  of  Suez  to  the  Nile  Delta.  By  331  B.C.  he  was  master  of  the 
Nile  Valley,  and  thence  turned  eastward,  conquering  in  succession  the 
different  provinces  of  the  great  empire,  until  before  his  death  in  323  B.C. 

151 


THE  JEWS  UNDER  THEIR  GREEK  RULERS 

his  empire  extended  from  the  INIediterranean  to  the  Indus,  and  in  the 
northeast  far  up  toward  central  Asia. 

Alexander's  conquests  were  significant  because  they  represented  the 
victory  of  Greek  ideas  and  culture  as  well  as  of  arms.  In  each  coun- 
try conquered  he  usually  succeeded  in  Hellenizing  the  native  peoples. 
Greek  cities,  settled  by  his  veterans  and  the  horde  of  migratory  Greeks 
that  followed  in  his  wake,  were  founded  at  strategic  points  throughout 
the  vast  empire.  As  recent  excavations  have  shown,  Greek  art  and 
ideas  continued  even  after  the  death  of  Alexander  to  sweep  eastward 
across  Asia,  until  they  profoundly  influenced  the  culture  and  ideas  in 
such  distant  nations  as  China  and  Japan. 

III.  The  Jews  in  Egypt  and  Alexandria.  The  crown  of  Alex- 
ander's constructive  work  was  the  building  of  Alexandria  in  Egypt. 
Selecting  a  narrow  strip  of  coast,  protected  on  the  south  by  the  low- 
lying  lake  Mareotis  and  on  the  north  by  the  Mediterranean,  he  built 
there  a  magnificent  Greek  city.  On  the  south  it  was  connected  by  canal 
with  the  Canopic  arm  of  the  Nile.  Alexander  thus  diverted  to  this  new 
metropolis  the  rich  trade  of  the  Red  Sea  and  the  Nile.  A  mile  distant 
was  the  island  of  Pharos,  which  was  connected  with  the  mainland  by  a 
great  mole.  On  either  side,  protected  from  the  storms,  were  the  eastern 
and  western  harbors,  large  enough  to  accommodate  the  merchant-men 
and  navies  of  the  ancient  world.  On  the  west  was  the  native  Egyptian 
quarter.  In  the  centre,  opposite  the  island  of  Pharos,  was  the  Greek 
and  official  quarter.  In  the  northeastern  part  of  the  city  was  the  Jew- 
ish quarter.  Here  the  Jews  lived  together  under  the  rule  of  their  law; 
they  were  also  represented  in  the  civic  council  by  their  own  leaders. 
When  Ptolemy,  the  son  of  Lagus,  became  governor  of  Egypt  and,  after 
the  death  of  Alexander,  subjected  Palestine,  he  carried  back  to  Alexan- 
dria many  Jewish  captives,  and  attracted  others  by  the  special  privileges 
which  he  granted  them.  In  them  he  recognized  valuable  allies  in  de- 
veloping the  commercial  resources  of  Alexandria  and  in  maintaining 
his  rule  over  the  native  Egyptians.  Here  in  time  the  Jews  became 
wealthy  and  powerful  and  developed  a  unique  civilization.  From  the 
beginning  of  the  Greek  period  the  number  of  the  Jews  in  Egypt  equalled, 
if  it  did  not  surpass,  that  of  the  Jews  in  Palestine.  While  they  main- 
tained close  connection  with  the  Jews  in  Palestine  and  remained  true 
to  their  Scriptures,  they  were  profoundly  influenced  by  their  close  con- 
tact with  the  civilization  and  ideas  of  the  Greek  world. 

IV.  The  Rule  of  the  F*tolemies.  The  long-continued  rule  of  the 
Ptolemies  in  Egypt  is  one  of  the  most  astonishing  phenomena  in  this 

152 


THE  RULE  OF  THE  PTOLEMIES 

remarkable  period  in  human  history.  Far  outnumbered  by  the  native 
population,  involved  in  almost  constant  war  with  their  fellow-Greeks, 
they  succeeded  by  sheer  audacity  and  vigilance  in  maintaining  their 
authority  during  the  many  crises  through  which  they  passed.  Egyjjt's 
natural  defences  also  made  its  conquest  by  outside  powers  exceedingly 
difficult.  Alexandria  with  its  fleet  commanded  Egypt's  one  entrance 
by  the  sea.  In  order  to  protect  its  eastern  gateway,  the  Isthmus  of  Suez, 
it  was  essential  that  the  Ptolemies  should  control  Palestine.  Southern 
Palestine  also  commanded  the  great  commercial  highway  that  led 
southward  and  eastward  to  Arabia  and  Babylonia.  Alexandria's  an- 
cient rivals.  Tyre  and  Sidon,  also  lay  on  the  borders  of  Palestine,  and  it 
was  essential  that  they  be  under  the  control  of  Egypt,  if  Alexandria  was 
to  remain  the  mistress  of  the  eastern  Mediterranean.  Furthermore, 
Palestine  and  the  Lebanons  (known  to  Josephus  as  Coele-Syria,  that  is, 
Hollow  Syria),  alone  of  the  countries  adjacent  to  Egypt,  possessed  the 
timber  required  for  the  building  of  Alexandria's  navies  and  merchant- 
men. Hence  Ptolemy,  the  son  of  Lagus,  and  his  successors  spared  no 
effort  to  maintain  their  control  over  the  lands  lying  along  the  eastern 
Mediterranean. 

In  the  division  of  the  empire  which  followed  the  death  of  Alexander 
three  rivals  struggled  in  turn  for  this  coveted  territory:  Ptolemy,  in  the 
south;  Antigonus,  who  soon  became  master  of  Asia  Minor  and  northern 
Syria;  and  Seleucus,  to  whom  fell  the  Tigris-Euphrates  Valley  and  the 
more  distant  eastern  provinces.  In  the  decisive  battle  of  Ipsus  in  301 
B.C.  the  overshadowing  power  of  Antigonus  was  broken  and  the  con- 
trol of  southwestern  Asia  was  divided  between  Seleucus  and  Ptolemy. 
By  the  treaty  that  was  made  after  the  battle,  Coele-Syria  was  given  to 
Ptolemy;  but  Seleucus  and  his  descendants,  who  were  known  as  the 
Seleucids  or  the  Seleucidse,  soon  attempted  to  wrest  it  from  Egypt,  and 
during  the  following  century  frequently,  with  varying  success,  renewed 
the  attempt.  In  295  and  again  in  219  they  were  for  a  brief  period 
masters  of  Palestine,  but  during  most  of  this  period  it  was  held  by 
the  Ptolemies. 

V.  Fortunes  of  the  Jews  of  Palestine.  Josephus's  figure  of  a 
ship  in  a  storm,  smitten  by  the  waves  on  either  side,  well  describes  the 
lot  of  the  Jews  of  Palestine  during  the  Greek  period.  They  were  in 
turn  victimized  and  courted  by  the  rival  kings  of  Egypt  and  Syria.  The 
Jews,  on  the  whole,  favored  the  rule  of  the  Ptolemies,  who  had  made 
many  concessions  to  their  kinsmen  in  Egypt.  The  presence  of  many 
Jews  in  Egypt  also  made  this  relation  more  natural.     As  a  rule  the 

153 


THE  JEWS  UNDER  THEIR  GREEK  RULERS 

Ptolemies  during  the  intervals  of  peace  left  the  Jews  of  Palestine  largely 
to  themselves,  as  long  as  they  paid  the  heavy  tribute  that  was  exacted. 
It  was,  however,  one  of  the  most  corrupt  periods  in  human  history. 
The  Ptolemaic  court  was  rich,  profligate,  and  constantly  degenerating. 
The  popular  story  of  Joseph  the  tax-collector  (which  Josephus  recounts 
at  length),  while  largely  fanciful,  vividly  reflects  the  conditions  and 
spirit  of  the  age.  Joseph,  who  evidently  belonged  to  one  of  the  lead- 
ing families  of  Jerusalem,  by  his  energy  and  effrontery  secured  the 
valuable  right  of  farming  the  taxes  of  Palestine.  By  the  iniquitous 
methods  then  in  vogue,  he  succeeded  in  amassing  a  great  fortune.  The 
splendid  ruins  of  Arak  el-Emir  on  the  heights  of  southern  Gilead,  east 
of  the  Jordan,  represent  the  huge  castle  and  town  built  by  his  son  Hyr- 
canus  and  testify  to  the  wealth  of  this  Jewish  adventurer.  The  stories 
that  Josephus  relates  regarding  Joseph  indicate  that  the  materialism 
and  sensuality  which  were  regnant  in  Alexandria  had  penetrated  even 
into  the  province  of  Judea. 

The  one  bright  spot  in  the  political  history  of  this  period  is  the  reign 
of  the  high  priest  Simon,  known  as  the  Just.  He  appears  to  have  de- 
voted himself  to  developing,  so  far  as  was  in  his  power,  the  interests  and 
resources  of  the  Palestinian  Jews  and  to  have  lifted  the  temple  service 
to  a  state  of  magnificence  that  received  the  unqualified  commendation 
of  Jesus,  the  son  of  Sirach. 

VI.  Conquest  of  Palestine  by  the  Seleucids  in  311  B.C.  Seleucus 
Nikanor  transferred  the  western  capital  of  his  empire,  known  as  Syria 
(a  shortened  form  of  the  ancient  name  Assyria),  to  Antioch,  near  the 
northeastern  end  of  the  Mediterranean.  This  city  w^as  situated  at  the 
point  where  the  Orontes  breaks  through  the  Lebanons  and  where  the 
great  roads  from  the  Euphrates  and  Coele-Syria  converge  and  run  west- 
ward to  its  seaport,  Seleucia.  It  was  built  in  the  midst  of  a  fertile  valley, 
partly  on  an  island  in  the  river  and  partly  on  its  northern  bank.  Not 
having  natural  defences,  the  city  depended  for  protection  upon  its  broad, 
encompassing  walls.  To  this  new  capital  was  attracted  a  diverse  native, 
Greek,  and  Jewish  population.  By  virtue  of  its  strategic  position  and 
its  commercial  and  political  importance,  it  soon  became  one  of  the 
great  cities  of  the  eastern  Mediterranean.  It  occupied  the  natural  site 
on  the  eastern  Mediterranean  seaboard  for  the  capital  of  a  great  empire. 
Shut  in  by  the  sea  on  the  west  and  the  desert  on  the  east,  Syria's  natural 
line  of  expansion  was  north  and  south.  Not  until  198  B.C.,  however, 
under  the  rule  of  Antiochus  the  Great,  did  it  secure  permanent  control 
of  Palestine.     The  degenerate  house  of  the  Ptolemies  made  several  in- 

154 


CONQUEST  OF  PALESTINE  BY  THE  SELEUCIDS 

effectual  attempts  to  win  back  their  lost  province,  but  henceforth  Pal- 
estine remained  under  the  rule  of  Syria.  The  personal  attractions  of 
Antiochus  the  Great,  the  specious  promises  which  he  made,  and  disgust 
because  of  the  corrupt  rule  of  Egypt  inclined  the  Jews  of  Palestine  to 
welcome  this  change  of  rulers.  The  court  at  Antioch,  however,  soon 
became  almost  as  corrupt  as  that  of  Egypt,  and  the  Jews  were  the  vic- 
tims of  the  greed  and  caprice  of  the  Syrian  despots.  Meantime  the  in- 
sidious Greek  culture  and  vices  were  influencing  and  largely  undermin- 
ing the  character  of  the  Jewish  rulers.  Judaism  was  unconsciously 
facing  a  supreme  crisis  in  its  history. 


§  CV.     THE  WISE  AND  THEIR  TEACHINGS 

That  men  may  learn  wisdom  and  instruction,  i.. 

May  understand  intelligent  discourses,  o/ X« 

May  receive  instruction  in  wise  conduct,  ^,j»® 

In  justice,  judgment  and  equity;  p-«) 

That  discretion  may  be  given  to  the  inexperienced. 

To  the  youth  knowledge  and  a  purpose; 

That  the  wise  man  may  hear  and  increase  in  learning. 

And  the  mtelligent  man  may  receive  counsel, 

That  he  may  understand  proverb  and  parable. 

The  words  of  the  wise  and  their  riddles. 

Does  not  Wisdom  call? 

And  Understanding  raise  her  voice? 

On  the  top  of  high  places  by  the  way. 

In  the  midst  of  the  street  she  stands, 

Beside  the  gateways  in  front  of  the  city, 

At  the  entrance  of  the  gates  she  cries  aloud : . 

To  you,  0  men,  I  call. 

And  my  appeal  is  to  the  sons  of  men. 

0  inexperienced,  acquire  discretion. 

And  ye  stupid,  gain  understanding. 

Hear,  for  I  speak  true  things, 

And  the  utterance  of  my  lips  is  right. 

Pride  and  arrogance  and  evil  conduct 
And  false  speech  do  I  hate. 
155 


THE  WISE  AxND  TIIEIR  TEACHINGS 

"With  me  is  counsel  and  practical  knowledge; 

With  me  understanding  and  might. 

By  me  kings  do  reign, 

And  rulers  decree  justice. 

By  me  princes  rule, 

And  nobles  judge  the  land. 

I  love  those  who  love  me, 

Those  who  seek  me  diligently  shall  find  me. 

Riches  and  honor  are  with  me. 

Lordly  wealth  and  prosperity. 

My  fruit  is  better  than  gold,  yea,  than  fine  gold, 

And  my  increase  than  choice  silver. 

I  walk  in  the  way  of  righteousness. 

In  the  midst  of  the  paths  of  justice, 

That  I  may  endow  those  who  love  me  with  wealth, 

And  that  I  may  fill  their  treasuries. 

Jehovah  formed  me  as  the  beginning  of  his  creation, 

The  first  of  his  works  of  old, 

In  the  primeval  past  was  I  formed, 

In  the  beginning,  before  the  earth  was. 

When  there  were  no  depths,  I  was  brougkt  forth, 

When  there  were  no  fountains  full  of  water. 

Before  the  mountains  were  settled. 

Before  the  hills  were  brought  forth. 

When  he  had  not  as  yet  made  the  earth, 

Nor  the  first  of  the  dust  of  the  world. 

When  he  established  the  heavens,  I  was  there. 
When  he  marked  off  the  vault  on  the  face  of  the  deep. 
Made  fast  the  fountains  of  the  deep, 
When  he  set  to  the  sea  its  bound, 
When  he  marked  out  the  foundations  of  the  earth. 
Then  I  was  at  his  side  as  a  foster-child; 
And  I  was  daily  full  of  delight. 
Sporting  in  his  presence  continually, 
Sporting  in  his  habitable  earth. 
156 


THE  WISE  AND  THEIR  TEACHINGS 

And  my  delight  is  with  the  sons  of  men ;  9.  AWe 

Now  therefore,  my  sons,  hearken  to  me,  me^''^" 

Hear  instruction  that  you  may  be  wise,  ("■*) 

And  reject  it  not. 

Happy  is  the  man  who  hearkens  to  me, 

Happy  are  they  who  walk  in  my  ways, 

Watching  daily  at  my  gates. 

Waiting  at  the  posts  of  my  doors. 

For  he  who  finds  me  finds  Ufe, 

And  obtains  favor  from  Jehovah. 

The  teaching  of  the  wise  is  a  fountain  of  life  lo. 

That  man  may  avoid  the  ways  of  death.  tiSf 

Walk  with  the  wise  and  you  will  become  wise,  i^'m-°^ 
But  he  who  associates  with  fools  shall  smart  for  it.        '"k 

A  wise  man  is  better  than  a  strong  man,  the^ise 

And  a  man   who   has  knowledge   than  he  who  has  24^)'° 
strength. 

A  wise  man  has  regard  for  the  well-being  of  his  beast,  Man's 
But  the  heart  of  the  wicked  is  cruel.  fnimau 

(12'") 

Love  not  sleep  lest  you  come  to  poverty;  12.^ 

Open  your  eyes  and  you  shall  have  plenty.  plSnce 

in 
sleeping 

If  you  find  honey,  eat  what  is  suflficient  for  you,  ^^"'^ 

Lest  you  be  surfeited  with  it  and  vomit  it  up.  i3.  in 

•'  *  eating 

(25'«) 

Who  cries.  Woe  ?  who,  Alas  ?  14.  in 

Who  has  contentions?     Who,  complaining?  f""''" 

Who  has  dullness  of  eyes?  al'-*^) 

They  who  linger  long  over  wine. 
They  who  go  about  tasting  mixed  wine. 
Look  not  upon  the  wine  when  it  is  red, 
When  it  sparkles  in  the  cup. 
At  last  it  bites  like  a  serpent. 
And  stings  like  an  adder. 
Your  eyes  shall  see  strange  things. 
And  your  mind  shall  suggest  queer  things. 
157 


THE  WISE  AND  THEIR  TEACHINGS 

You  shall  be  like  one  sleeping  at  sea, 
Like  one  asleep  in  a  great  storm. 
"  They  have  struck  me,  but  I  feel  no  pain ; 
They  have  beaten  me,  but  I  feel  it  not; 
I  wiH  seek  it  yet  again.     When  shall  I  awake  from  my 
wine?" 

Do  you  see  a  man  hasty  in  his  words? 
There  is  more  hope  for  a  fool  than  for  him. 
A  man  has  joy  from  the  utterance  of  his  mouthj 
And  a  word  in  due  season,  how  good  it  is! 

A  man*s  wisdom  makes  him  slow  to  anger. 
And  it  is  his  glory  to  pass  over  transgression. 
He  who  is  slow  to  anger  is  better  than  the  mighty, 
And  he  who  rules  his  spirit  than  he  who   takes  a 
city. 

My  son,  give  me  your  attention. 

And  let  your  eyes  give  careful  heed  to  my  ways. 

For  a  harlot  is  a  deep  well. 

And  an  adultress  is  a  narrow  pit. 

Yea,  she  lies  in  wait  as  a  robber, 

And  increases  the  faithless  among  men. 

18.  Let  your  eyes  look  right  straight  forward, 
t^^r^ist  And  let  your  gaze  be  straight  before  you. 

fation  ^^*  ^^^  P^*^  °^  y®^''  ^®®*  ^^  level, 

(426-n)  And  let  all  your  ways  be  stable. 

Turn  not  to  the  right  hand  nor  to  the  left, 

Keep  your  foot  away  from  evil. 

19.  To  The  simpleton  believes  everything, 

derf/*^'  But  the  prudent  man  looks  well  to  where  he  walks. 

(I4'5) 

20.  To  Do  you  see  a  man  wise  in  his  own  conceit? 
modest  There  is  more  hope  of  a  fool  than  him. 

'26'»  Let  another  man  praise  you  and  not  your  own  mouth ; 

Some  other,  and  not  your  own  lips. 
158 


STRUCTURE  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  PROVERBS 

Keep  your  heart  above  all  that  you  guard,  21.  To 

For  out  of  it  are  the  issues  of  life.  \^  p"'* 

The  righteousness  of  the  upright  shall  save  them,  [42?^^* 

But  the  treacherous  are  caught  by  their  own  desire.  ii«) 

To  do  what  is  just  and  right  22.  To 
Is  more  acceptable  to  Jehovah  than  sacrifice. 


do  what 
id  right 
(2P) 


A  soft  answer  turns  away  wrath;  23. To 

But  a  harsh  word  stirs  up  anger.  fo" ^^ 


peace 
(J  5') 


Withhold  not  good  from  your  neighbor, 
When  it  is  in  your  power  to  do  it.  be*  gen- 

Say  not  to  your  neighbor,  "  Go,  and  come  again, 
And  to-morrow  I  will  give,"  when  you  have  it  by  you. 


erous 
(3") 


be  mer- 
ciful 


He  who  despises  his  neighbor,  sins,  25.  To 

But  he  who  has  pity  on  the  poor,  happy  is  he. 
He  who  has  pity  on  the  poor,  lends  to  Jehovah,  ('f" 

And  his  good  deed  will  yet  pay  him. 

If  your  enemy  be  hungry,  give  him  bread  to  eat,  26.  To 

And  if  he  be  thirsty,  give  him  water  to  drink;  toi'i'"'^ 

For  you  will  heap  coals  of  fire  upon  his  head, 
And  Jehovah  will  reward  you. 


enemy 
(35^1.  2S) 


My  son,  reject  not  the  instruction  of  Jehovah,  27.  To 

And  do  not  grow  weary  of  his  reproof,  vfne  i!'- 

For  whom  Jehovah  loveth  he  reproveth,  sf^^jj'^- 

Even  as  a  father  the  son  in  whom  he  delights.  (3°"  n 

Trust  in  Jehovah  with  all  your  heart,  28.  To 

And  depend  not  upon  your  own  understanding.  *™^' 

In  all  your  ways  know  him  well,  seek 

And  he  will  make  plain  your  path.  ^d-' 


I.  Structure  and  Authorship  of  the  Book  of  Proverbs.    The 

book  of  Proverbs  is  in  reality  a  collection  of  originally  independent 
groups  of  proverbs.     In  its  present  form  it  consists  of  nine  general 

159 


ance 


THE  WISE  AND  THEIR  TEACHINGS 

divisions:  (1)  The  preface  defining  the  aims  of  the  book,  !•"•.  (2)  A 
general  introduction  describing  the  characteristics  and  value  of  the 
wisdom  teaching,  F-9'^  (3)  A  large  collection  designated  as  the  Prov- 
erbs of  Solomon,  10*-22^'.  The  fact  that  ten  proverbs  are  repeated  in 
practically  the  same  words  indicates  that  it,  like  the  book  of  Proverbs 
as  a  whole,  is  made  up  of  smaller  collections.  In  chapters  10-15  the 
prevailing  type  of  the  poetic  parallelism  is  antithetic  or  contrasting, 
while  in  the  remainder  of  the  book  the  synonymous  or  repeating  paral- 
lelism prevails.  (4)  A  supplemental  collection,  22^^-24".  This  is  in- 
troduced by  the  suggestive  superscription,  "Incline  your  ear  and  hear 
the  words  of  the  wise."  (5)  A  shorter  appendix,  24^"^^  with  the  super- 
scription, "These  also  are  from  the  wise."  (6)  The  second  large  collec- 
tion of  proverbs,  25-29.  This  bears  the  superscription,  "These  also 
are  the  proverbs  of  Solomon  which  the  men  of  Hezekiah,  king  of  Judah, 
transcribed."  It  contains  several  proverbs  found  in  the  first  large  col- 
lection, and  evidently  represents  later  gleanings  from  the  same  field. 
(7)  The  words  of  Agur,  30.  Of  Agur  nothing  is  known  beyond  his 
name,  which  may  be  simply  typical.  The  latter  part  of  the  chapter  con- 
tains a  collection  of  numerical  enigmas  w^hich  may  or  may  not  have 
been  associated  at  first  with  the  opening  section.  (8)  The  words  of 
King  Lemuel,  31*"'.  (9)  A  description  of  the  ideal  Hebrew  housewife, 
3110-31^  The  contents  of  these  collections  as  well  as  their  superscriptions 
clearly  indicate  that  these  proverbs  represent  the  work  of  many  different 
wise  men,  living  at  different  periods  and  writing  from  different  points  of 
view.  Few,  if  any,  can  be  confidently  attributed  to  Solomon.  Even  the 
proverbs  in  the  large  collection,  10'-22"',  which  are  definitely  designated 
as  the  Proverbs  of  Solomon,  emphasize  monogamy  and  denounce  rulers 
who  oppress  their  subjects.  INIany  of  the  proverbs  in  these  larger  Sol- 
omonic collections  give  practical  advice  regarding  the  bearing  of  a  sub- 
ject in  the  presence  of  the  king,  and  few  of  them  fit  in  the  mouth  of  the 
splendor-loving  monarch,  who  by  his  foreign  marriages  and  grinding 
taxation  exerted  a  baleful  influence  upon  the  political  and  religious  life 
of  Israel.  The  great  majority  of  the  proverbs  reflect  the  noble  ethical 
teachings  of  the  prophets.  Clearly  the  term  Proverbs  of  Solomon  is 
simply  a  late  designation  of  early  proverbs  the  authorship  of  which,  like 
that  of  most  popular  maxims,  had  long  since  been  forgotten. 

II.  Date  of  the  Different  Collections.  The  preface  and  general 
introduction  to  the  book  of  Proverbs  reflect  the  immorality  and  evils  that 
characterized  both  the  Persian  and  Greek  periods.  Their  background 
is  the  corrupt  life  of  the  city.    The  tendency  to  personify  wisdom  is  also 

160 


DATE  OF  THE  DIFFERENT  COLLECTIONS 

one  of  the  marks  of  later  Jewish  thought.  It  is  probable,  therefore,  that 
this  part  of  the  book  of  Proverbs  was  added  by  a  late  editor  who  lived 
during  the  Greek  period.  The  oldest  collection  in  the  book  is  clearly 
to  be  found  in  10^-22'^  The  evils  which  it  describes,  the  oppression  of 
the  poor  and  dependent  by  the  rich  and  powerful,  existed  throughout 
most  of  Israel's  history,  but  were  especially  prominent  in  the  days  of 
the  divided  kingdom  immediately  before  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem. 
The  references  to  the  king  imply  that  the  proverb  writers  had  in  mind 
Hebrew  rulers.  In  general  their  rule  is  just  and  they  enjoy  the  respect 
of  their  subjects.  The  prevailing  occupation  of  the  people  is  agriculture. 
Commerce  is  just  beginning  to  develop.  The  exile  has  not  yet  cast  its 
shadow  over  Hebrew  life  and  thought.  The  majority  of  these  proverbs 
clearly  represent  the  fruitage  of  the  teachings  of  the  pre-exilic  prophets, 
and  many  of  them  come  from  the  days  immediately  before  the  final  de- 
struction of  Jerusalem.  From  the  occasional  references  to  the  scoffers, 
the  absence  of  allusions  to  idolatry,  and  the  fact  that  monogamy  is 
here  assumed,  we  may  infer  that  some  of  them  at  least  come  from  the 
Persian  or  even  the  Greek  periods.  It  is  probable  that  this  large  col- 
lection was  not  made  until  the  latter  part  of  the  Persian  or  the  early  part 
of  the  Greek  period. 

The  appendices  in  22^^-24'^  contain  many  repetitions  of  proverbs 
found  in  the  larger  collection.  The  prevalence  of  intemperance,  the  ex- 
istence of  a  merchant  class,  and  the  allusions  to  exiled  Jews  (e.  g.,  24") 
point  rather  clearly  to  the  dissolute  Greek  period  as  the  age  when  these 
small  collections  were  made.  The  word  meaning  "transcribe,"  that  is 
found  in  the  superscription  to  the  second  large  collection  (25-29),  is 
peculiar  to  the  late  Hebrew,  and  implies  that  this  superscription,  like 
those  of  the  Psalms,  was  added  by  a  late  Jewish  scribe.  The  literary 
form  of  these  proverbs  is  more  complex  than  those  of  the  other  large 
collection.  The  kings  are  feared  by  their  subjects,  but  figure  now  as 
oppressors  rather  than  champions  of  the  people.  While  this  collection 
may  contain  a  few  proverbs  coming  from  the  period  before  the  final 
destruction  of  Jerusalem,  it  is  probable  that,  like  the  smaller  appendices 
to  the  first  large  collection,  they  were  not  gathered  until  the  early 
part  of  the  Greek  period.  The  long  appendices  in  chapters  30-31  are 
clearly  late.  The  note  of  doubt  in  the  opening  section  of  30  is  closely 
akin  to  that  which  recurs  in  the  book  of  Ecclesiastes.  It  is  also  based  on 
Isaiah  44*  and  45^  Aramaisms  and  the  acrostic  form  in  31""^'  imply 
that  the  background  was  the  late  Persian  or  early  Greek  period. 

The  history  of  the  book  of  Proverbs  is  therefore  reasonably  clear.     Its 

161 


THE  WISE  AND  THEIR  TEACHINGS 

original  nucleus  was  probably  a  small  group  of  popular  proverbs  that 
had  been  transmitted  orally  from  the  days  before  the  final  destruction 
of  Jerusalem.  These,  together  with  proverbs  which  first  became  cur- 
rent during  the  Persian  period,  were  collected  some  time  in  the  days  fol- 
lowing the  work  of  Nehemiah.  To  these  was  added  in  the  Greek  period 
the  smaller  appendices  in  22'^-24".  Possibly  the  same  editor  joined  to 
them  the  large  collection  found  in  25-29.  He  or  some  wise  man  in  the 
Greek  period  prefixed  the  elaborate  introduction  in  chapters  1-9.  To 
the  whole  was  added  the  appendices  in  chapters  30  and  31.  It  is  prob- 
able that  by  the  middle  of  the  Greek  period,  or  at  least  before  200  B.C., 
the  book  of  Proverbs  was  complete  in  its  present  form. 

in.  The  Wise  in  Israel's  Early  History.  Long  before  2000  B.C. 
the  scribes  of  ancient  Egypt  were  busy  collecting  "the  words  of  counsel 
of  the  men  of  olden  time."  Many  of  these  ancient  maxims  still  survive. 
The  best-known  is  that  which  bears  the  title  "The  Wisdom  of  Ptah- 
hotep."  The  desire  to  preserve  and  transmit  the  results  of  practical 
experience  is  the  common  motive  that  underlies  the  work  of  the  wise. 
It  is  that  which  inspires  the  teachers  of  all  ages.  The  ancients  were 
keenly  alive  to  the  importance  of  instruction  and  training.  All  that  is 
significant  in  the  civilizations  of  the  past  is,  in  a  sense,  the  result  of  this 
teaching  motif. 

In  early  Israel  there  were  many  men  and  women  famous  for  their 
ability  to  give  wise  counsel.  In  his  stormy  career  Joab,  David's  valiant 
commander,  frequently  profited  by  the  counsel  of  certain  wise  women 
(§  LIIP""  LIX^').  David's  friend  Hushai,  by  his  wily  counsel  at  the 
time  of  Absalom's  rebellion,  saved  the  king's  life.  The  narrative  in  II 
Samuel  declares  that  the  counsel  of  Ahithophel  was  esteemed  almost  as 
highly  as  the  divine  oracle.  For  his  keen  insight  and  acute  decisions, 
as  well  as  for  his  witty  utterances,  Solomon  gained  a  reputation  which 
made  him  in  the  thought  of  later  generations  the  father  of  all  wisdom 
literature.  In  a  significant  passage  found  in  Jeremiah  18"  the  three 
classes  of  Israel's  teachers  are  brought  into  sharp  contrast.  In  urging 
that  the  prophet  be  put  to  death  his  foes  declared:  "Teaching  will  not 
perish  from  the  priest,  nor  counsel  from  the  wise,  nor  the  word  from  the 
prophet."  From  references  in  Isaiah  and  Jeremiah  it  is  evident  that 
before  the  final  destruction  of  the  Hebrew  state  the  counsel  of  the  wije 
was  chiefly  political  and  secular,  and  often  not  in  accord  with  the  higher 
ideals  of  the  great  pre-exilic  prophets. 

IV.  Their  Prominence  in  the  Greek  Period.  The  transformation 
of  the  wise  into  religious  as  well  as  secular  teachers  apparently  came 

162 


THEIR  PROMINENCE   IN  THE  GREEK  PERIOD 

after  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem.  It  was  the  result  of  a  variety  of 
forces  which  have  already  been  studied.  The  destruction  of  the  He- 
brew state  and  the  resulting  prominence  of  the  individual  led  the  wise 
to  turn  their  attention  from  questions  of  political  to  those  of  personal 
import.  The  result  is  that  the  word  "Israel"  is  found  nowhere  in  the 
book  of  Proverbs.  The  teachings  there  found  are  both  individual  and 
universal  and  apply  to  Gentile  as  well  as  Jew,  to  the  present  as  well  as 
the  past.  The  gradual  disappearance  of  the  prophets  during  the  latter 
part  of  the  Persian  period,  and  the  fact  that  the  priests  ever  devoted 
themselves  more  and  more  to  the  ritual  and  less  to  teaching,  left  a  great 
need  in  the  life  of  Judaism  which  called  to  the  front  the  wise.  At  the 
same  time  the  problems  of  the  individual  became  more  and  more  com- 
plex and  insistent.  Especially  was  this  true  during  the  Greek  period 
when  Hellenic  civilization,  with  its  corrupting  influences,  swept  over 
Palestine  and  the  lands  of  the  dispersion.  It  was  a  period  when  the 
principles  enunciated  by  the  earlier  prophets  had  been  in  general  adopted 
by  the  Jewish  race.  The  task,  however,  of  interpreting  these  principles 
simply  and  practically  into  the  every-day  life  of  the  people  was  left  to 
these  lovers  and  teachers  of  men,  the  wise.  The  evidence  of  the  volu- 
minous writings  of  Ben  Sira,  as  well  as  of  the  books  of  Proverbs  and 
Ecclesiastes,  makes  it  quite  clear  that  it  was  during  the  Greek  period, 
and  possibly  in  part  under  the  intellectual  stimulus  of  Greek  thought, 
that  the  wise  attained  their  greatest  prominence  and  influence. 

V.  The  Alms  of  the  Wise.  The  aims  of  the  wise  are  in  part  de- 
fined in  the  remarkable  preface  to  the  book  of  Proverbs,  which  was 
intended  primarily  to  describe  the  purpose  of  the  collection  of  prov- 
erbs which  embodies  their  teachings.  Four  distinct  classes  commanded 
their  attention:  (1)  The  ignorant,  those  who  were  unacquainted  with 
the  moral,  religious,  and  practical  heritage  received  from  preceding  gen- 
erations. (2)  The  inexperienced,  those  who  had  not  yet  learned  in  the 
school  of  life  the  art  of  adjusting  themselves  successfully  to  their  envi- 
ronment. (3)  The  scoffers,  who  openly  rejected  the  counsel  of  the  sages. 
And  (4)  the  disciples  who  were  eager  to  learn  and  profit  by  the  teach- 
ings of  the  wise. 

The  definite  aims  of  the  wise  must  be  inferred  from  their  teachings. 
They  were  concerned  with  the  development  of  the  individual,  not  the 
nation.  Their  first  aim  was  to  instruct  the  ignorant  in  the  fundamental 
moral  and  religious  principles  already  laid  down  by  earlier  priests  and 
prophets.  In  the  words  of  the  preface  to  the  book  of  Proverbs  they 
taught, 

163 


THE  WISE  AND  THEIR  TEACHINGS 

That  men  may  learn  wisdom  and  instruction. 
May  understand  intelligent  discourses, 
May  receive  instruction  in  wise  dealing, 
In  justice,  judgment,  and  equity. 

'iTieir  second  aim  was  to  point  out  the  pitfalls  that  lay  in  the  path  of  the 
inexperienced,  and  to  save  them  from  moral  wreck  by  inspiring  within 
them  right  ideals  and  ambitions.  This  aim  is  also  well  stated  in  the 
preface  to  the  book  of  Proverbs: 

That  discretion  may  be  given  to  the  inexperienced, 
To  the  youth  knowledge  and  a  purpose. 

The  third  aim  of  the  wise  was  to  educate  the  receptive  and  all  who  came 
to  them  in  the  attitude  of  disciples.  This  aim  corresponded  very  closely 
to  that  of  the  modern  educator.  Again  the  preface  to  the  book  of 
Proverbs  clearly  expresses  this  educational  ideal: 

That  the  wise  man  may  hear  and  increase  in  learning. 
And  the  intelligent  man  may  receive  counsel. 
That  he  may  understand  a  proverb  and  parable. 
The  words  of  the  wise  and  their  riddles. 

The  wise,  therefore,  sought  not  merely  to  instruct,  but  to  educate;  that 
is,  to  develop  sane,  happy,  and  efficient  men  and  women.  They  sought 
to  train  those  who  would  have  not  only  knowledge  and  experience,  but 
also  the  ability  to  apply  these  successfully  in  the  varied  relations  of  life. 
Above  all,  they  endeavored  to  educate  not  parts  of  a  man,  but  the  whole 
man.  Hence  their  interest  and  the  subjects  that  they  treat  are  as  broad 
as  human  experience. 

The  wise  were  keenly  alive  to  the  importance  of  youthful  education. 
The  proverb: 

Train  up  a  child  in  the  way  in  which  he  should  go, 
And  even  when  he  is  old  he  will  not  depart  from  it, 

voices  the  fundamental  principle  upon  which  all  effective  education  is 
based.  They  recognized  that  in  the  plastic  days  of  childhood  and 
youth  ideals  and  character  and  efficiency  could  best  be  developed,  and 
that  education  was  not  the  work  of  a  moment,  but  a  gradual,  progressive 
development. 

164 


THE  AIMS  OF  THE  WISE 

Primary  education,  however,  they  intrusted  to  parents,  and  in  many 
proverbs  emphasized  the  responsibility  which  every  parent  owed  to  his 
child.  They  also  counselled  parents  regarding  the  training  of  their 
children.    The  maxims: 

The  rod  of  correction  gives  wisdom. 

But  a  child  left  to  himself  brings  disgrace  to  his  mother. 

Chastise  your  son  while  there  is  still  hope. 

And  set  not  your  heart  on  his  destruction. 

He  who  spares  his  rod  hates  his  son, 

But  he  who  loves  him  chastises  him, 

express  their  appreciation  of  the  importance  of  discipline  in  the  early 
training  of  the  child.  It  is  not  clear  at  what  age  the  wise  took  up  the 
instruction  of  the  young.  Possibly  it  was  at  about  the  age  of  twelve, 
when  the  individual  passed  from  childhood  to  adolescence,  with  its  in- 
creasing dangers  and  possibilities.  Many  of  their  teachings  are  espe- 
cially adapted  to  the  problems  of  this  tempestuous  period. 

VI.  The  Methods  of  the  Wise.  In  attaining  their  aims  the  wise 
men  of  Israel  employed  a  variety  of  methods.     Proverbs  such  as, 

Every  piupose  is  established  by  counsel, 
And  by  wise  guidance  make  thou  war, 

suggest  that,  as  in  the  days  before  the  exile,  they  were  still  active  in  con- 
nection with  the  civic,  social,  and  national  life  of  the  people,  and  that 
by  influencing  public  policies  they  conserved  the  moral  welfare  of  the 
individual  as  well  as  the  state.  Many  references  to  "wisdom's  voice 
crying  aloud  in  the  public  places  "  suggest  that,  like  the  earlier  prophets, 
the  wise  men  at  times  taught  in  public,  in  the  market-places,  in  the  open 
spaces  within  the  city  gates,  or  wherever  men  were  gathered  together. 
They  appear  also  to  have  taught  in  private,  by  wise  counsel  delivering 
the  individual  disciple  who  resorted  to  them  from  the  perils  that  beset 
his  path,  or  aiding  him  by  prudent  advice  in  solving  successfully  his  in- 
dividual problems. 

In  6"-^'  Ben  Sira  has  given  a  vivid  sketch  of  the  schools  of  the  wise, 
which  are  clearly  the  forerunners  of  the  later  rabbinical  schools: 

My  son,  if  you  wish,  you  will  be  instructed. 
And  if  you  pay  attention,  you  will  become  prudent 
If  you  are  willing  to  hear,  you  will  receive, 
165 


THE  WISE  AND  THEIR  TEACHINGS 

And  if  you  listen  attentively,  you  will  be  wise. 

Stand  in  the  assembly  of  the  elders, 

And  whoever  is  wise,  stick  close  to  him. 

Be  willing  to  listen  to  every  discourse, 

And  let  no  illuminating  proverbs  escape  you. 

If  you  see  a  ma«  of  insight,  hasten  to  him, 

And  let  your  foot  wear  out  his  threshold. 

Let  your  mind  dwell  upon  the  law  of  the  Most  High, 

And  meditate  continually  on  his  commands. 

Thus  he  will  enlighten  your  mind. 

And  teach  you  the  wisdom  you  desire. 

It  requires  little  imagination  to  picture  these  ancient  prototypes  of 
our  modern  universities.  Like  all  Oriental  teachers,  the  wise  doubt- 
less sat  cross-legged,  with  their  disciples  in  a  circle  about  them.  They 
trusted  largely  to  question  and  answer,  and  poured  out  from  their  own 
and  their  inherited  experience  wise  maxims  such  as  would  guide  the 
simple  and  inexperienced  and  develop  efficient  manhood. 

VIII.  Their  Important  Teachings.  In  the  opening  chapters  of 
Proverbs  the  wise  describe  the  character  and  value  of  that  wisdom  which 
represents  their  teaching  as  a  whole.  In  chapters  8  and  9  "Wisdom" 
is  personified.  Inasmuch  as  the  Hebrew  word  for  "wisdom"  is  fem- 
inine, it  is  spoken  of  as  a  woman.  Chapter  9  describes,  in  a  form 
intended  to  arrest  the  attention  of  the  most  inattentive,  the  feast  that 
Wisdom  offers  to  her  guests.  This  is  contrasted  with  Folly's  banquet, 
and  the  consequences  to  those  who  participated  in  these  rival  banquets 
are  clearly  presented. 

In  the  practical  teachings  of  the  wise  no  question  that  vitally  con- 
cerned the  individual  man  was  considered  beneath  their  attention. 
Like  the  wise  modern  teacher  they  made  no  distinction  between  the 
religious  and  the  secular.  Everything  that  influenced  man's  acts  and 
ideals  possessed  for  them  profound  religious  import,  ^^^lile  the  prover- 
bial epigrammatic  form  of  their  teaching  was  not  conducive  to  a  logical 
or  complete  treatment  of  their  theme,  yet  in  a  series  of  concise,  dramatic 
maxims  they  dealt  with  almost  every  phase  of  man's  domestic,  economic, 
legal,  and  social  life.  They  presented  clearly  man's  duty  to  animals,  to 
himself,  to  his  fellow-men,  and  to  God.  If  utilitarian  motives  were  urged 
in  the  great  majority  of  cases,  it  is  because  they  sought  to  reach  their 
pupils  on  their  own  level.  Although  their  ideals  sometimes  fell  below 
those  of  the  great  prophets,  and  especially  those  of  the  Great  Teacher 

1G6 


THEIR  IMPORTANT  TEACHINGS 

ef  Nazareth,  the  importance  of  their  work  in  establishing  individual 
standards  of  right  and  wrong,  in  keeping  alive  in  concrete  form  the  prin- 
ciples of  the  earlier  prophets,  and  in  preparing  their  race  for  the  crises 
through  which  it  was  soon  to  pass  cannot  be  overestimated.  As  effec- 
tive teachers  of  the  individual  they  have  an  intensely  practical  and  sig- 
nificant message  for  all  men  in  the  stream  of  life  to-day  as  well  as  in 
the  past. 

§  CVI.     THE   DIFFERENT   CURRENTS   OF   THOUGHT  IN 
JUDAISM  DURING  THE  GREEK  PERIOD 

The  law  of  Jehovah  is  perfect,  restoring  the  soul;  i.  True 

The  testimony  of  Jehovah  is  trustworthy,  making  wise  the  ^cferof 

simple,  jeho- 

The  precepts  of  Jehovah  are  right,  rejoicing  the  heart,  i^w^ 

The  commandment  of  Jehovah  is  pure,  enlightening  the  eyes.   \^f^ 
The  fear  of  Jehovah  is  clean,  enduring  forever, 
The  judgments  of  Jehovah  are  true  and  altogether  just. 
They  are  of  more  value  than  gold,  yea,  than  much  fine  gold, 
Sweeter  than  honey  and  the  droppings  from  the  honey-comb. 
By  them  is  thy  servant  warned;   in  keeping  them  is  great 

reward. 
Who  can  discern  his  errors;    cleanse  thou  me  from  secret 

faults, 
Also  from  the  presumptuous  restrain  thy  servant;  let  them 

not  have  dominion  over  me. 
Then  shall  I  be  perfect  and  cleared  from  great  transgression. 
Let  the  words  of  my  mouth  be  acceptable  and  the  meditation 

of  my  heart. 
In  thy  sight,  0  Jehovah,  my  Rock  and  my  Redeemer. 

Jehovah  is  our  refuge  and  strength,  2.  je- 

An  ever  present  help  in  trouble.  pro-'^ 

Therefore  we  fear  not,  though  the  earth  be  moved,  care'hf 

And  though  the  mountains  totter  into  the  heart  of  the  timeof 

°  trouble 

sea;  (46'») 

The  seas  roar,  their  waters  foam, 
Mountains  shake  with  the  swelling  of  its  stream. 
Jehovah  of  hosts  is  with  us. 
The  God  of  Jacob  is  our  refuge. 
167 


DIFFERENT  CURRENTS  OF  THOUGHT  IN  JUDAISM 

His  brooks  make  glad  the  city  of  Jehovah, 
The  holy  dwelling  place  of  the  Most  High. 
Jehovah  is  in  the  midst  of  her,  she  cannot  totter; 
Jehovah  will  help  her  at  the  turn  of  the  morn. 
Nations  raged,  kingdoms  tottered. 
When  he  uttered  his  voice  the  earth  melted. 

Jehovah  of  hosts  is  with  us, 

The  God  of  Jacob  is  our  refuge. 

Come,  behold  the  works  of  Jehovah, 

What  desolations  he  hath  made  in  the  earth. 

He  is  about  to  make  wars  to  cease  unto  the  end  of 

the  earth. 
The  bow  he  breaketh,  and  dasheth  the  spear  in  pieces ; 
He  burneth  the  chariots  with  fire. 
Be  still,  and  know  that  I  am  Jehovah ; 
I  shall  be  exalted  among  the  nations,  I  shall  be  exalted 

on  the  earth. 

Jehovah  of  hosts  is  with  us. 
The  God  of  Jacob  is  our  refuge. 

All  the  ends  of  the  earth  will  remember  and  will  turn  to 

Jehovah, 
And  all  the  families  of  the  nations  will  worship  in  his  presence ; 
For  the  dominion  belongs  to  Jehovah  and  he  rules  over  the 

nations. 
Verily,  him  alone  will  all  the  prosperous  of  the  earth  worship. 
Before  him  all  those  about  to  go  down  to  the  dust  will  bow, 
A  seed  will  serve  him,  it  will  be  told  to  a  generation  to  come ; 
And  they  will  declare  his  righteousness  that  he  hath  accom- 

pUshed  to  a  people  yet  to  be  born. 

Now  this  word  of  Jehovah  came  to  Jonah  the  son  of 
Amittai : 

Arise,  go  to  that  great  city,  Nineveh,  and  preach  against 
it ;  for  their  wickedness  has  come  up  before  me.  But  Jonah 
rose  up  to  flee  to  Tarshish  from  the  presence  of  Jehovah. 
And  he  went  down  to  Joppa  and  found  a  ship  going  to  Tar- 
shish ;  so  he  paid  the  fare  and  embarked  to  go  with  them  to 
Tarshish  from  the  presence  of  Jehovah. 

168 


DIFFERENT  CURRENTS  OF  THOUGHT  IN  JUDAISM 

But  Jehovah  sent  a  furious  wind  upon  the  sea,  and  there  7.  DiV 
was  a  mighty  tempest,  so  that  the  ship  threatened  to  break  o? ITia^ 
in  pieces.     Then  the  sailors  were  afraid  and  cried,  each  to  k"!'* 
his  own  god ;  and  they  cast  into  the  sea  the  wares  that  v/ere 
in  the  ship,  in  order  to  Hghten  it.     But  Jonah  had  gone 
down  into  the  bottom  of  the  ship;   and  he  lay  fast  asleep. 
And  the  captain  of  the  ship  came  and  said  to  him:   What 
are  you  doing  asleep?     Call  on  your  God,  perhaps  that  God 
will  think  on  us  that  we  perish  not.     And  they  said  to  one 
another,  Come,  let  us  cast  lots,  that  we  may  know  for  whose 
sake  this  evil  has  come  upon  us.     So  they  cast  lots  and  the 
lot  fell  upon  Jonah. 

Then  they  said  to  him.  Tell  us,  what  is  your  occupation,  s.  Dis- 
and  whence  do  you  come?    what  is  your  country  and  of  oftir 
what  people  are  you?     And  he  said  to  them,  I  am  a  Hebrew,  '(^fio\"''^" 
and  a  worshipper  of  Jehovah,  the  God  of  heaven,  who  hath 
made  the  sea  and  the  dry  land.     Then  the  men  were  exceed- 
ingly afraid,  and  said  to  him.  What  is  this  you  have  done? 
For  they  knew  that  he  was  fleeing  from  the  presence  of 
Jehovah,  for  he  had  told  them. 

Then  they  said  to  him.  What  shall  we  do  to  thee,  that  the  9. 
sea  may  be  calm  for  us?  for  the  sea  grew  more  and  more  age  of 
stormy.     And  he  said  to  them.  Take  me  up  and  throw  me  i"l^^^^^ 
into  the  sea;   so  shall  the  sea  be  calm  for  you,  for  I  know  saiiora 
that  for  my  sake  this  great  storm  has  overtaken  you.     But  ^"  "^ 
the  men  rowed  hard  to  get  back  to  the  land ;  but  they  could 
not,  for  the  sea  grew  more  and  more  stormy  against  them. 

Therefore  they  cried  to  Jehovah,  and  said.  We  beseech  lo. 
thee,  0  Jehovah,  we  beseech  thee,  let  us  not  perish  for  this  sion^of* 
man's  life,  neither  bring  innocent  blood  upon  us,  for  thou  [jj^^^' 
art  Jehovah;   thou  hast  done  as  it  pleaseth  thee.     So  they  sailors 
took  up  Jonah,  and  threw  him  into  the  sea;   and  the  sea 
ceased  from  its  raging.     Then  the  men  feared  Jehovah  ex- 
ceedingly, and  they  offered  a  sacrifice  to  Jehovah,  and  made 
vows. 

Then  Jehovah  prepared  a  great  fish  to  swallow  Jonah  and  jl-^^^i's 
Jonah  was  in  the  belly  of  this  fish  three  days  and  three  nights.  Deliver- 
Thereupon  Jonah  prayed  to  Jehovah  his  God,  out  of  the  belly  ^p:- 
of  the  fish.    And  Jehovah  spoke  to  the  fish,  and  it  threw  up  2'-  ">) 
Jonah  upon  the  dry  land. 

169 


mes 

sage 

to  ihe 

Nine- 

vites 

(3'<) 


Their 
repent- 
ance 


DIFFERENT  CURRENTS  OF  THOUGHT  IxN  JUDAISM 

12.  His  And  the  word  of  Jehovah  came  to  Jonah  the  second  time, 
saying,  Arise,  go  to  that  great  city,  Nineveh,  and  preach  to  it 
what  I  shall  tell  thee.  So  Jonah  rose  and  went  to  Nineveh, 
as  Jehovah  said.  Now  Nineveh  was  a  great  city  before  God, 
of  three  days'  journey.  And  Jonah  began  by  going  through 
the  city  a  day's  journey,  and  he  cried,  and  said,  Forty  days 
more  and  Nineveh  shall  be  overthrown. 

13.  And  the  people  of  Nineveh  believed  God ;  and  they  pro- 
claimed a  fast,  and  put  on  sackcloth,  from  the  greatest  of 
them  to  the  least  of  them.  And  when  word  came  to  the 
king  of  Nineveh,  he  rose  from  his  throne,  and  took  off  his 
robe,  and  dressed  in  sackcloth,  and  sat  in  the  dust.  And  he 
made  proclamation  and  published  in  Nineveh :  By  the  decree 
of  the  king  and  his  nobles :  Man,  beast,  herd,  and  flock  shall 
not  taste  anything;  let  them  neither  eat  nor  drink  water; 
But  let  them  clothe  themselves  with  sackcloth,  both  man 
and  beast,  and  let  them  cry  mightily  to  God,  and  turn  each 
from  his  evil  way,  and  from  the  act  of  violence  which  they 
have  in  hand.  Who  knows  but  that  God  may  relent,  and 
turn  from  his  fierce  anger,  that  we  perish  not? 

u.  And  God  saw  their  works,  how  they  turned  from  -their  evil 

way ;  and  God  relented  of  the  evil  which  he  said  he  would  do 
to  them,  and  did  it  not. 
15.  But  it  displeased  Jonah  greatly,  and  he  was  angry.     And 

inge^^  he  prayed  to  Jehovah,  and  said.  Ah  now,  Jehovah,  was  not 
ofcffKrl  *^^^  what  I  said  when  I  was  yet  in  mine  own  country? 
Therefore  I  hastened  to  flee  to  Tarshish;  for  I  knew  that 
thou  art  a  God,  gracious  and  merciful,  slow  to  anger,  and 
abounding  in  love,  and  relenting  of  evil.  Therefore,  0  Je- 
hovah, take  now,  I  beseech  thee,  my  life  from  me ;  for  it  is 
better  for  me  to  die  than  to  live !  And  Jehovah  said,  Doest 
thou  well  to  be  angry?  Then  Jonah  went  out  of  the  city,  and 
sat  down  before  the  city,  and  there  made  him  a  booth,  and  sat 
under  it,  until  he  might  see  what  would  become  of  the  city. 
And  Jehovah  God  prepared  a  gourd,  and  made  it  to  come 
up  over  Jonah,  that  it  might  be  a  shade  over  his  head.  So 
tr^ted  Jonah  rejoiced  exceedingly  over  the  gourd.  But  as  the 
dawn  appeared  the  next  day  God  prepared  a  worm  and  it  in- 


Thcir 
pardon 


meroy 
to  the 
heathen 
(4'-) 


16.  His 
selfish- 
ness 
con 


with 
God's 


infinite    jured  the  gourd,  so  that  it  withered.     And  when  the  sun 
(?TP)       arose,  God  prepared  a  sultry  east  wind.     And  the  sun  beat 

170 


DIFFERENT  CURRENTS  OF  THOUGHT  IN  JUDAISM 

upon  the  head  of  Jonah,  so  that  he  was  faint,  and  begged  for 
himself  that  he  might  die  saying.  It  is  better  for  me  to  die 
than  to  live.  And  God  said  to  Jonah,  Is  it  well  for  thee  to 
be  angry  about  the  gourd?  And  he  said,  It  is  well  for  me  to 
be  angry,  even  to  death!  And  Jehovah  said.  Thou  carest 
for  a  gourd,  for  which  thou  hast  not  troubled  thyself,  nor 
hast  thou  brought  it  up — a  thing  that  came  in  a  night  and 
hath  perished  in  a  night.  Shall  I,  indeed,  not  care  for  the 
great  city,  Nineveh,  in  which  there  are  one  hundred  and 
twenty  thousand  human  beings  who  know  not  their  right 
hand  from  their  left;  besides  much  cattle? 


17. 
Kxpcri- 


teaches 
ihe 


I,  Koheleth,  was  king  over  Israel  in  Jerusalem.     And  I 
applied  my  mind  to  searching  out  and  exploring  wisdom,  all 
that  is  done  under  heaven:   it  is  an  evil  task  that  God  hath 
given  the  children  of  men  at  which  to  toil.     I  have  seen  all  foiiy.of 
the  works  that  are  done  under  the  sun;    and  behold,  the  afreV"^ 
whole  is  vanity  and  a  striving  after  wind.     The  crooked  ed^e^'" 
caimot  be  made  straight;   and  the  wanting  cannot  be  num-  -^'j^j 
bered.     I  communed  with  myself,  saying.  Behold,  I  have  (Ecdcs. 
increased  and  gathered  wisdom  more  than  all  who  were  be-   '"  "^ 
fore  me  in  Jerusalem,  and  my  mind  has  abundantly  beheld 
wisdom  and  knowledge.     And  I  applied  my  mind  to  know 
wisdom  and  knowledge,  madness  and  folly:    I  know  that 
this  also  is  a  striving  after  wind.     For  in  much  wisdom  is 
much  trouble,  and  he  who  increases  knowledge,  increases 
pain. 

I  said  in  my  mind.  Come  now,  I  will  test  you  with  pleas-  is.  En- 
ure ;  so  look  upon  what  is  attractive ;  and,  behold,  this  also  l^'i"-^ 
is  vanity.     I  said  of  laughter.  It  is  mad ;   and  of  pleasure,  {;^;;''°" 
What  does  it  do?     I  searched  in  my  mind,  how  to  stimulate  foun.  in 
my  flesh  with  wine,  while  my  mind  was  guiding  with  wisdom,  tKa\\o» 
and  how  to  lay  hold  on  folly,  until  I  should  see  what  is  good  ^fp^'^f 
for  the  children  of  men  to  do  under  the  heavens  all  the  days  ii^e 
of  their  life.     I  did  great  works :  I  built  for  myself  houses ;  I  weniTh 
planted  for  myself  vineyards;    I  made  for  myself  gardens  °^^^,. 
and  parks,  and  I  planted  trees  in  them,  every  kind  of  fruit-  sjons 
tree.     I  made  for  myself  pools  of  water,  to  water  a  grove 
springing  up  with  trees.     I  bought  male  and  female  slaves 

J  7; 


DIFFERENT  CURRENTS  OF  THOUGHT  IN  JUDAISM 

and  had  slaves  bom  in  my  house ;  also  I  had  great  posses- 
sions of  herds  and  flocks,  more  than  all  who  had  been  before 
me  in  Jerusalem.  I  also  gathered  for  myself  silver  and  geld, 
and  the  treasure  of  kings  and  of  provinces.  I  secured  for 
myself  male  and  female  singers,  and  the  delights  of  the  sons 
of  men,  mistresses  of  all  kinds.  And  I  grew  more  wealthy 
than  all  who  were  before  in  Jerusalem ;  also  my  wisdom  re- 
mained with  me.  And  nothing  that  my  eyes  craved  did  I 
keep  from  them;  I  did  not  deny  my  heart  any  joy,  for  my 
heart  rejoiced  because  of  all  my  labor.  Then  I  looked  on  all 
the  works  that  my  hands  had  wrought,  and  on  the  labor  that 
I  had  labored  to  do ;  and,  behold,  all  was  vanity  and  a  striv- 
ing after  wind,  and  there  was  no  gain  under  the  sun. 

19.  A  And  I  turned  to  behold  wisdom  and  madness,  and  folly ; 
fa*!!  for  what  can  the  man  do  who  comes  after  the  king?  Even 
awaits  tiiat  which  has  been  done  already.  Then  I  saw  that  wisdom 
wise  excels  folly,  as  far  as  light  excels  darkness.  The  wise  man's 
^d"the  eyes  are  in  his  head,  but  the  fool  walks  in  darkness:  yet  I 
^°°L      know  that  the  same  fate  overtakes  them  all.     Then  I  sa:d  in 

my  heart,  As  is  the  fate  of  a  fool  so  will  be  my  fate ;  so  why 
have  I  then  been  more  wise?  Then  I  said  in  my  heart  that 
this  also  is  vanity.  For  of  the  wise  man,  even  as  of  the  fool, 
there  is  no  remembrance  for  ever,  inasmuch  as  in  the  days 
to  come  all  will  have  been  already  forgotten.  And  how  the 
wise  man  dies  even  as  the  fool!  So  I  hated  life,  because 
the  work  that  is  done  under  the  sun  is  evil  to  me ;  for  all  is 
vanity  and  a  striving  after  wind. 

20.  There  is  nothing  better  for  a  man  than  that  he  should  eat 
hxf^'  and  drink,  and  find  his  pleasure  in  his  labor.  This  also 
better     J  gaw  that  it  is  from  the  hand  of  God.     For  who  can  eat, 

than  to  .  .««•'%       ^TM   •       •  1 

enjoy  or  who  can  have  enjoyment  without  him?  This  is  also 
good      vanity  and  a  striving  after  wind. 

things 
of  life 

(j4-2ob)  I.  7he  Ritualists.  Liberty  of  thought  as  well  as  speech  was  from 
the  first  characteristic  of  Israel's  life  and  thought.  It  was  one  of  the 
many  valuable  heritages  that  the  Hebrews  brought  with  them  from  the 
free  life  of  the  desert.  Their  close  contact  with  the  outside  world,  and 
especially  with  Hellenic  life  and  thought  during  the  Greek  period,  in- 
creased this  sen.se  of  freedom.  The  result  is  that  many  different  cur- 
rents of  thought  are  reflected  in  the  Old  Testament  writings  that  come 

172 


THE   RITUALISTS 

from  this  age.  Most  familiar  and  easiest  understood  is  the  ritualistic 
ty;)e.  It  is  represented  by  the  Chronicler,  who  lived  and  wrote  some  time 
between  300  and  250  B.C.  For  him  all  life  and  interest  centred  about 
the  temple  and  its  services.  In  general  the  vision  of  the  ritualists  was 
turned  toward  the  past  rather  than  the  present  and  the  future.  In  the 
traditions  regarding  the  origin  of  the  temple  and  its  institutions,  in  keep- 
ing the  ceremonial  law,  in  participating  in  the  formal  ritual,  and  in  join- 
ing their  songs  with  those  of  the  temple  singers  they  found  an  escape 
from  the  pettiness  of  the  age  and  attained  that  peace  and  joy  which  is 
expressed  in  many  of  the  psalms  of  the  Psalter. 

II.  The  Legalists.  Closely  related  to  the  ritualists  were  those 
whose  interests  were  all  fixed  in  the  study  of  the  law  and  the  teachings 
of  the  earlier  priests.  They  regarded  the  written  laws  as  a  complete 
guide  to  conduct  and  the  embodiment  of  Jehovah's  supreme  message 
to  his  race.  Psalms  like  the  fragment  found  in  19'""  voice  their  con- 
victions: 

The  law  of  Jehovah  is  perfect,  restoring  the  soul, 

The  judgments  of  Jehovah  are  true  and  altogether  just. 

By  them  is  thy  servant  warned;  in  keeping  them  is  great  reward. 

They  emphasized  not  merely  external  acts  and  words,  but  inner  motives. 
In  character  and  in  conduct  they  were  noble  products  of  that  religion 
which  Israel  had  inherited  from  the  past.  By  them  were  probably 
treasured  stories  such  as  are  found  in  the  first  chapters  of  the  book  of 
Daniel.  The  detailed  references  in  chapter  2  to  the  marriage  of  Anti- 
ochus  Theos  and  the  daughter  of  Ptolemy  Philadelphus  in  248  B.C. 
and  to  the  murder  of  Antiochus  by  his  former  wife  Laodicea,  together 
with  the  absence  of  allusions  to  subsequent  events,  indicate  that  these 
stories  were  probably  committed  to  writing  somewhere  between  255 
and  245  B.C.  Their  aim  was  clearly  to  emphasize  the  supreme  impor- 
tance of  fulfilling  faithfully  the  demands  of  the  law,  even  in  the  face  of 
bitter  opposition  and  persecution,  and  the  certainty  that  Jehovah  would 
deliver  those  who  were  loyal  to  him.  Their  teachings  were  especially 
adapted  to  inspire  the  tried  and  tempted  Jews  of  the  dispersion,  who 
were  sorely  persecuted  by  the  headien  among  whom  they  lived.  The 
dramatic  picture  of  men  who  dared  face  the  fiery  furnace  or  the  hungry 
lions  rather  than  depart  from  the  demands  of  the  law  undoubtedly 
proved  a  great  inspiration  to  the  Jews  of  the  Greek  period. 

III.  The  Disciples  of  the  Prophets.  Throughout  the  centuries 
that  followed  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  the  great  ethical  prophets  of 

173 


DIFFERENT  CURRENTS  OF  THOUGHT  IN  JUDAISM 

the  pre-exilic  period  had  never  been  without  spiritual  disciples.  They 
faithfully  studied  and  applied  in  their  own  lives  the  principles  laid  down 
by  their  earlier  guides.  Although  the  influence  of  the  contemporary 
prophets  constantly  waned,  yet  the  spirit  of  those  earlier  champions  of 
the  faith  lived  in  the  hearts  of  their  followers.  In  many  of  the  psalms 
of  the  Psalter  Amos  and  Isaiah  and  Jeremiah  speak  in  terms  adapted 
to  the  changed  problems  of  the  Jews  of  the  Greek  period.  In  Psalm  46 
the  trust  in  Jehovah  which  Isaiah  advocated  has  become  a  living  force 
in  the  life  of  the  Psalmist  and  of  the  class  in  behalf  of  which  he  spoke. 
In  the  background  one  hears  the  march  of  the  multitude  armed  by 
Alexander  for  world-conquest  and  the  din  of  conflict  as  army  met  army; 
but  over  all  stands  Jehovah,  protecting  his  sanctuary  and  people,  supreme 
in  the  lives  of  men  and  nations.  The  narrow,  nationalistic,  messianic 
hopes  have  long  since  been  abandoned,  and  instead  Jehovah  is  recog- 
nized as  the  one  supreme  being  whose  kingdom  or  dominion  includes 
all  the  nations  of  the  earth.  In  imagination  these  disciples  of  the 
prophets  saw  the  time  when  rich  and  poor,  Jew  and  Gentile,  should 
bow  before  Jehovah  and  be  united  in  loyalty  to  him.  Thus  arose  that 
highest  conception  of  the  kingdom  of  God  which  is  the  foundation  of 
Jesus'  teaching. 

IV.  The  Date  and  Character  of  the  Book  of  Jonah.  From  those 
who  sat  at  the  feet  of  the  earlier  prophets  came  one  of  the  most  re- 
markable books  of  the  Old  Testament.  In  literary  form  the  little  book 
of  Jonah  is  closely  akin  to  the  stories  in  the  opening  chapters  of  Genesis 
and  the  first  half  of  the  book  of  Daniel.  Its  many  Aramaic  words,  its 
quotations  from  the  late  book  of  Joel,  its  universalism,  and  its  mission- 
ary spirit  all  indicate  that  it  comes  either  from  the  closing  years  of  the 
Persian  or  from  the  earlier  part  of  the  Greek  period.  The  story  of 
Jonah,  like  many  similar  stories  in  the  Old  Testament,  was  probably 
known  to  the  Semites  centuries  before  it  was  employed  by  the  author  of 
the  book  to  point  his  great  prophetic  teaching.  In  the  familiar  Greek 
story  of  Hercules,  Hesione,  the  daughter  of  the  Trojan  king,  is  rescued 
by  the  hero  from  a  sea-monster  which  held  her  in  its  stomach  three 
days.  An  old  Egyptian  tale  coming  from  die  third  millennium  B.C. 
tells  of  an  Eg}^tian  who  was  shipwrecked  and  after  floating  three  days 
was  swallowed  by  a  great  sea-monster  and  thus  carried  to  the  land. 
From  India  comes  the  tradition  of  a  man  who  went  to  sea  contrary  to 
the  commands  of  his  mother.  AMiile  on  the  way  the  ship  was  seized  by 
an  unknown  power  and  not  allowed  to  proceed  until  the  offender  was 
three  times  selected  by  lot  and  then  cast  overboard. 

174 


TEACHINGS  OF  THE  BOOK  OF  JONAH 

V.  Teachings  of  the  Book  of  Jonah.  The  value  and  message  of 
the  book  of  Jonah  have  in  the  past  been  largely  overlooked  because  tho 
true  literary  character  of  the  book  has  been  misunderstood.  It  was 
never  intended  by  its  author  to  be  regarded  as  a  historical  narrative. 
Its  hero  Jonah,  the  son  of  Amitt^ii,  according  to  II  Kings  14",  lived 
during  the  reign  of  Jeroboam  II  (7S0-740  B.C.),  and  predicted  the  wide 
extension  of  the  territory  of  southern  Israel;  but  the  Jonah  of  the  story 
is  evidently  a  type  of  the  Jew  of  the  Persian  and  Greek  periods.  By 
showing  the  pettiness  of  his  attitude  toward  the  heathen  the  author 
sought  to  broaden  the  vision  and  quicken  the  conscience  of  his  fellow- 
Jews.  The  portrait  is  remarkably  vivid  and  suggestive.  Jonah  fled 
from  Jehovah's  land  and  took  refuge  in  the  sea,  not  because  he  feared 
the  Ninevites,  but,  as  he  plainly  declares  later,  because  he  feared  that, 
if  he  did  preach  to  the  Assyrian  foes  of  his  race,  Jehovah  would  repent 
and  spare  them.  In  the  scene  in  the  midst  of  the  raging  tempest  the 
piety  of  the  heathen  sailors  and  their  zeal  in  sparing  the  guilty  Israelite 
stand  forth  in  favorable  contrast  to  Jonah's  action  in  refusing  to  carry 
out  Jehovah's  command.  The  Ninevites,  clad  in  sackcloth,  repenting 
for  their  sins,  and  craving  Jehovah's  forgiveness,  are  far  more  attractive 
than  the  sullen  prophet,  complaining  because  Jehovah  has  spared  the 
heathen  foes  of  his  race  and  later  upbraiding  Jehovah  because  of  the 
destruction  of  the  gourd  that  for  a  time  had  protected  his  head  from  the 
burning  sun.  Jehovah's  concluding  remonstrance  voices  the  message 
of  the  book.  Like  the  New  Testament  parable  of  the  Prodigal  Son,  the 
story  of  Jonah  presents  in  graphic  form  the  unbounded  love  of  the 
heavenly  father  and  contrasts  it  sharply  with  the  petty  jealousies  and 
hatred  of  his  favored  people.  It  was  a  call  to  Israel  to  go  forth  and  be- 
come a  missionary  to  all  the  world  and  a  protest  against  the  nation's 
failure  to  perform  its  God-given  task. 

VI.  The  Book  of  Ecclesiastes.  Very  different  is  the  spirit  and 
purpose  of  the  book  of  Ecclesiastes.  It  e\'idcntly  comes  from  one  of 
the  many  wisdom  teachers  who  flourished  during  the  Greek  period  and 
it  speaks  in  the  name  of  Solomon.  It  is  an  essay  on  the  value  of  life.  In 
its  original  form  its  thought  was  so  pessimistic  that  it  has  been  supple- 
mented at  many  points  by  later  editors.  These  insertions  include  (1) 
proverbs  commending  wisdom  and  praising  the  current  wisdom  teach- 
ings, and  (2)  the  work  of  a  pious  scribe,  a  forerunner  of  the  later  Phari- 
sees, who  sought  to  correct  the  utterances  of  the  original  writer  (who  is 
commonly  designated  as  Koheleth)  and  to  bring  them  into  accord  with 
current  orthodoxy.    The  language  and  style  of  the  book  are  closely 

175 


DIFFERENT  CURRENTS  OF  THOUGHT  IN  JUDAISM 

akin  to  those  of  the  Chronicler  and  the  author  of  the  book  of  Esther. 
It  also  contains  several  Persian  and  possibly  one  Greek  word.  The  book 
in  its  earlier  form  was  evidently  known  to  Ben  Sira,  the  author  of  Ecclesi- 
asticus,  who  lived  about  180  B.C.  In  4'^"'*  and  10"""  there  are  apparent 
references  to  the  reign  of  Ptolemy  Epiphanes,  who  came  to  the  throne  of 
Egypt  at  the  age  of  five,  and  whose  court  was  famous  for  its  dissolute- 
ness and  profligacy.  The  book,  therefore,  may  be  dated  with  consider- 
able confidence  a  little  before  200  B.C.  It  was  a  corrupt,  barren  period. 
Crime  was  rampant  in  the  temple  as  well  as  at  the  court  in  Alexandria 
(3").  The  people  were  crushed  by  the  powerful  and  were  without 
means  of  redress  (4').  A  despot  sat  on  the  throne  (10^'^)  and  spies 
lurked  everywhere  (10-"). 

VII.  Koheleth's  Philosophy  of  Life.  The  author  of  the  original 
book  of  Ecclesiastes  is  the  spokesman  of  that  class  in  Judaism  who 
were  oppressed  and  crushed  by  this  dreary  outlook.  He  e\-idently 
lived  in  Jerusalem  and  probably  near  the  temple  (5^  8'").  From  the 
allusions  in  7-*'  '^  it  is  evident  that  he  was  unhappily  married.  From 
the  classic  description  of  old  age  found  in  lP-12'  it  would  appear  that 
when  he  wrote  he  was  well  advanced  in  years,  and  spoke  out  of  the  depths 
of  his  own  painful  personal  experience,  having  been  left  without  son 
or  close  kinsman  (4*).  From  his  teachings  it  is  clear  that  he  had  broken 
away  from  the  orthodox  wisdom  school.  Before  his  enfeebled  vision 
rose  the  seamy,  dreary  side  of  life,  and  yet  back  of  the  lament  of  this 
ancient  pessimist  is  revealed  a  man  of  high  ideals,  impelled  by  a  spirit 
of  scientific  thoroughness.  Though  he  was  intense  and  eager  in  his 
quest  for  true  happiness  and  in  his  analysis  of  the  meaning  of  life,  he 
found  no  abiding  joy,  for  his  outlook  was  sadly  circumscribed.  Life 
beyond  the  grave  offered  to  him  no  hope  or  compensation.  He  was, 
however,  by  no  means  an  agnostic.  He  believed  in  God's  rulership  of 
the  world;  but  the  God  of  his  faith  was  inscrutable,  far  removed  from 
the  life  of  men.  Hence,  unlike  many  of  his  contemporaries,  as  for  ex- 
ample the  psalmists,  he  found  little  joy  or  inspiration  in  his  religion. 
According  to  the  conclusion,  which  he  proclaimed  in  the  beginning  of 
his  essay  and  held  consistently  throughout,  all  human  striving  and  am- 
bition, even  life  itself,  are  but  superlative  vanity,  nor  can  man  attain 
any  permanent  or  complete  satisfaction.  The  one  positive  teaching 
which  Koheleth  reiterates  is  that  it  is  man's  highest  privilege  to  extract 
from  passing  experiences  the  small  measure  of  joy  and  happiness  that 
they  offer,  and  therewith  to  be  content.  Compared  with  many  other 
Old  Testament  books,  the  religious  value  of  Ecclesiastes  is  slight  indeed. 

176 


KOHELETH'S  PHILOSOPHY  OF  LIFE 

Its  chief  value,  however,  is  historical:  it  presents  one  phase  of  thought 
in  the  Judaism  of  this  period,  and  shows  how  sorely  the  Jewish  people 
needed  the  spur  of  a  great  crisis  to  rouse  them  to  noble  and  unselfish 
action.  The  book  of  Ecclesiastes  also  furnishes  the  darker  background 
which  brings  out  in  clear  relief  the  inspiring  messages  of  the  great 
prophets  that  had  gone  before,  and  of  the  greater  Prophet  who  was  to 
set  before  the  human  race  a  worthy  goal  and  a  fresh  and  true  inter- 
pretation of  the  value  of  life. 

§  CVII.     THE   TEACHINGS   OF   JESUS  THE   SON   OF   SIRACH 

All  wisdom  is  from  the  Lord,  i.wis 

And  is  with  him  forever.  f^^ 

The  sand  of  the  seas,  and  the  drops  of  rain,  '^r^- 

And  the  days  of  eternity — who  shall  number?  and 

The  height  of  the   heaven,   and   the   breadth   of  the  g^^,fo 

earth,  m^^ng,^ 

And  the  depths  of  the  abyss — who  shall  search  them  i'-''») 

out? 
Wisdom  hath  been  created  before  all  things. 
And  keen  insight  from  everlasting. 
To  whom  hath  the  root  of  wisdom  been  revealed? 
And  who  hath  known  her  shrewd  counsels? 
There  is  one  wise,  greatly  to  be  feared. 
The  Lord  sitting  upon  his  throne, 
He  created  her,  and  saw  and  numbered  her, 
And  poured  her  out  over  all  his  works. 
She  is  with  all  flesh  according  to  his  gift, 
And  he  giveth  her  freely  to  those  who  love  him. 

My  son,  if  you  would  serve  the  Lord,  2.  Af- 

Prepare  your  soul  for  temptation.  nLb'y" 

Set  your  heart  aright,  and  be  steadfast,  J^^- 

That  you  may  not  be  dismayed  in  the  time  of  calamity,  p-ra  a 

Cleave  to  him,  and  depart  not,  ^u"' 

That  you  may  prove  yourself  wise  at  the  last.  <2''') 

Accept  whatever  comes  to  you, 

And  be  patient  in  sickness  and  affliction. 

For  gold  is  tried  by  the  fire, 

And  acceptable  men  in  the  furnace  of  affliction. 

177 


THE  TEACHINGS  OF  THE  SON  OF  SIRACH 

3.  Put  your  trust  in  the  Lord,  and  he  will  help  you, 
a^'*  Hope  in  him,  and  he  will  make  smooth  your  way. 
^o{j«  You  who  fear  the  Lord,  wait  for  his  mercy, 

^reiy  And  turn  not  aside  lest  you  fall. 

Warded  You  who  fear  the  Lord  trust  in  him, 

("')  And  your  reward  shall  not  fail. 

You  who  fear  the  Lord,  hope  for  good  things, 
And  for  eternal  gladness  and  deliverance? 

4.  My  son,  if  you  are  rich,  walk  in  humility. 

Value  ThsLt  you  will  be  more  beloved  than  a  generous  man. 

ineek-  The  greater  you  are,  humble  yourself  the  more, 

(317.S0)  And  you  shall  find  favor  before  the  Lord. 

For  great  is  the  might  of  the  Lord, 
And  he  is  glorified  by  those  who  are  meek. 

5.  Seek  not  the  things  that  are  too  hard  for  you, 
M^e'lf  -A^^d  search  not  out  things  that  are  beyond  you. 

futile  That  over  which   power  has   been   given   you,  think 

(321 -»5)  thereon, 

For  you  have  no  business  with  the  things  that  are 
hidden. 

With  that  which  is  out  of  your  field  have  nothing 
to  do. 

For  more  things  are  shown  to  you  than  you  can  un- 
derstand. 

For  men  have  many  speculations. 

And  evil  theories  have  led  them  astray. 

Where  there  is  no  pupil  to  the  eye,  the  light  fails, 

And  where  there  is  no  understanding,  wisdom  fails. 

«.  im-  A  stubborn  heart  fares  ill  at  the  last, 

^^*g  But  he  who  loves  the  good  finds  it. 

of  the  A  stubborn  heart  has  many  troubles, 

tfve'''  And  the  overbearing  heap  sin  upon  sin. 

^.f,j  For  the  wound  of  the  scorner  there  is  no  healing, 

Since  he  is  a  plant  of  an  evil  kind. 
A  wise  mind  understands  the  proverbs  of  the  wise, 
And  an  ear  attentive  to  wisdom  is  a  joy. 
178 


toward 
the 
pofir 
and  o|>- 
pro.ssfd 


THE  TEACHINGS  OF  THE  SON   OF  SIRACH 

Water  quenches  flaming  fire,  7, 

And  right  acts  make  atonement  for  sins.  fS.,, 

He  who  does  a  favor — it  meets  him  on  his  way, 
And  when  he  falls  he  shall  find  support. 
My  son,  deprive  not  the  poor  of  his  living, 
And  let  not  the  eyes  of  the  needy  grow  weary.  1"'^'*' 

Make  not  a  hungry  soul  groan. 

And  do  not  stir  up  the  feelings  of  him  who  is  smitten. 
Deliver  the  oppressed  from  the  oppressor. 
And  be  not  faint-hearted  in  giving  judgment. 
Be  as  a  father  to  the  fatherless. 
And  instead  of  a  husband  to  the  widow; 
So  will  God  call  you  his  son. 

And  be  gracious  to  you  and  save  you  from  destruc- 
tion. 

Observe  the  opportunity  and  beware  of  evil,  8. 

And  be  not  ashamed  of  yourself.  mo°cf^' 

For  there  is  a  shame  that  brings  sin,  f^^ 

And  another  shame,  glory  and  grace.  scif- 

Do  not  be  obsequious  to  your  own  shame,  (4^1^*; 
And  do  not  humiliate  yourself  until  it  is  a  sin  against 
yourself. 

Hold  not  back  speech,  in  its  proper  time,  9. 

And  hide  not  your  wisdom.  f^eX 

For  by  speech  wisdom  shall  be  known,  ^_%''- 

And  instruction  by  the  word  of  the  tongue. 

Speak  not  against  the  truth. 

But  be  humble  because  of  your  own  ignorance. 

Strive  for  the  right  even  to  death. 

And  the  Lord  will  fight  for  you. 

Be  not  boastful  with  your  tongue. 

And  slack  and  remiss  in  your  work. 

10.  Up- 
Be  not  as  a  lion  in  your  house,  n^ss'in 

Nor  arrogant  and  suspicious  among  your  servants.  |^'^'Jj'® 

Let  not  your  hand  be  stretched  out  to  receive,  busi- 

And  closed  when  you  should  repay.  (4'». «) 

179 


THE  TEACHINGS  OF  THE  SON  OF  SIRACH 

11.  Evil  Set  not  your  mind  upon  your  possessions, 
Buffi-""  And  say  not,  They  are  sufficient  for  me. 
(S^^to)  Follow  not  your  own  mind  and  strength, 

To  walk  in  the  desires  of  your  heart. 

12.  Do  not  give  yourself  up  to  your  passion, 
yielding  ^^^st  it  like  a  bull  eat  up  your  strength, 
to  pas-           For  a  wild  passion  destroys  its  possessor, 

(fr-"*)  And  makes  him  the  laughing-stock  of  his  enemies. 

13.  Well  ordered  speech  makes  friends, 

fricn'iL^  ^^'^  ^  gracious  tongue  wins  kindly  greetings. 

C6-")  Let  those  who  are  friendly  toward  you  be  many, 

But  your  confidant  one  of  a  thousand. 
If  you  would  get  a  friend,  get  him  by  testing. 
And  do  not  give  him  your  confidence  too  quickly. 
For  there  is  many  a  fair-weather  friend. 
But  he  does  not  remain  in  the  day  of  need. 

14.  A  faithful  friend  is  a  strong  defence, 
o*a"*  And  he  who  finds  him  finds  a  treasure, 
friend"'  There  is  nothing  equal  to  a  faithful  friend, 
(14-16)  And  his  worth  is  beyond  price. 

A  faithful  friend  is  a  source  of  life. 

And  he  who  fears  the  Lord  finds  him. 

He  who  fears  the  Lord  directs  his  friendship  aright, 

For  as  he  is,  so  is  his  friend. 

15.  Not  Devise  not  a  lie  against  your  brother, 
^k  Nor  do  the  like  to  a  friend  or  associate, 
what  Never  take  pleasure  in  speaking  a  falsehood, 
t^me^  For  its  outcome  is  not  good. 

(712.  1>) 

16.  Do  not  treat  badly  a  servant  who  serves  you  faithfully, 
t^Bef-            No'^  ^  hired  servant  who  gives  to  you  his  best. 

1u?»)  Love  a  sensible  servant  as  your  own  self, 

Defraud  him  not  of  liberty. 


17.  To 
parents 


Honor  your  father  with  your  whole  heart, 
And  forget  not  the  pangs  of  your  mother. 
180 


DATE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  THE  SON  OF  SIRACII 

Remember  that  of  them  you  v/ere  born, 
And  now  you  can  recompense  them  for  what  they  have 
done  for  you. 

Fear  the  Lord  with  all  your  soul,  is.  To 

And  regard  his  priests  with  reverence.  a  °j  hi? 

Love  your  Creator  with  all  your  strength,  P'"- 

And  do  not  neglect  his  ministers.  ("• »») 

I.  Date  and  Character  of  Jesus,  the  Son  of  Sirach.     Out  of  the 

large  number  of  anonymous  books  that  come  from  the  Persian  and 
Greek  periods  one  stands  forth  unique.  It  is  the  Wisdom  of  Ben  Sira. 
With  the  exception  of  the  Psalter  and  Isaiah,  it  is  the  largest  book  that 
has  come  to  us  from  ancient  Israel.  Fortunately,  its  date  and  authorship 
may  be  determined  with  reasonable  certainty.  In  the  prologue  to  the 
Greek  translation,  its  translator  describes  himself  as  the  grandson  of 
Jesus,  the  son  of  Sirach,  and  states  that  he  went  to  Egj^it  in  132  B.C. 
Hence  it  is  probable  that  his  grandfather  wrote  some  time  during  the 
early  part  of  the  second  century  B.C.  The  appreciative  description  of 
Simon  the  high  priest  in  the  fifdeth  chapter  of  Ben  Sira  indicates  that 
its  author  was  a  contemporary  as  well  as  an  admirer  of  that  famous 
head  of  the  Judean  community.  From  the  references  in  the  rabbinical 
writings,  as  well  as  from  the  definite  statement  of  Eusebius,  it  is  reason- 
ably certain  that  this  Simon  lived  between  200  and  175  B.C.  Further- 
more, the  quotations  in  the  writings  of  Ben  Sira  from  Ecclesiastes  in  its 
original  form  imply  that  he  wrote  during  the  latter  part  of  the  Greek 
period.  The  complete  absence  of  any  reference  to  the  Maccabean 
struggle  also  proves  beyond  question  that  he  lived  before  168  B.C.  These 
facts  indicate  that  the  date  of  his  wridng  was  somewhere  between  190 
and  175  B.C. 

In  the  Hebrew  version  the  name  of  this  famous  sage  appears  as 
Jesus,  the  son  of  Eleazar,  the  son  of  Sira.  In  the  Greek  version,  how- 
ever, he  is  known  simply  as  Jesus,  the  son  of  Sirach.  Ben  Sira,  or 
Sirach,  was  apparently  his  family  name,  vvliile  Jesus  is  the  Greek 
equivalent  of  Jeshua  or  Joshua.  From  his  writings  it  may  be  inferred 
that  he  belonged  to  a  well-known  Jerusalemite  family.  It  is  also  not 
improbable  that  he  was  connected  with  the  high-priestly  line.  His 
references  to  Simon  the  high  priest  reveals  his  deep  sympathies  with 
the  ecclesiastical  rulers  of  Jerusalem.  The  closing  words  in  the  Hebrew 
version  of  51"  are  equally  significant:  "Give  thanks  to  him  who  chose 

ISl 


THE  TEACHINGS  OF  THE  SON  OF  SIRACH 

the  sons  of  Sadok  to  be  priests."  In  his  teachings  Ben  Sira  is  in  some 
respects  a  forerunner  of  the  later  Sadducees.  Evidently  he  was  a  man 
of  influence  in  the  Judcan  community.  His  fame  as  a  wise  man 
doubtless  attracted  many  disciples.  He  was  deeply  interested  in  every 
phase  of  life.  While  his  point  of  view  w-as  somewhat  similar  to  that 
of  Koheleth,  his  outlook  was  thoroughly  optimistic.  His  teachings  were 
positive  rather  than  negative.  His  faith  was  that  of  the  fathers,  and 
his  purpose  constructive.  Out  of  the  wealth  of  teachings  inherited 
from  the  past,  and  also  out  of  his  own  personal  experience  and  observa- 
tion, he  sought  to  inspire  right  ideals  in  the  young  and  to  develop  them 
into  happy  and  eflBcient  servants  of  God  and  of  their  fellow-men.  In 
this  respect  he  was  a  worthy  representative  of  the  wise  who  during  this 
period  moulded  the  life  of  Judaism. 

II.  His  Writings.  The  prologue  to  the  Greek  version  of  the  wisdom 
of  Sirach  states  that  he  was  a  devoted  student  of  the  earlier  scriptures  of 
his  race.  In  33'*  he  acknowledges,  in  all  modesty,  his  indebtedness  to 
the  past: 

I  awakened  last  of  all  as  one  who  gathers  after  the  great  gatherers, 
By  the  blessing  of  the  Lord  I  profited  and  filled  my  wnne-press  as  one 
who  gathers  grapes. 

It  was  natural,  therefore,  that  he  should  write  down  his  teachings  in  the 
language  of  his  fathers.  Unlike  most  of  his  contemporaries,  he  possessed 
a  classical  Hebrew  style.  Like  the  wise  men  whose  teachings  are  pre- 
served in  the  book  of  Proverbs,  he  put  his  thought  into  poetic,  pro- 
verbial form.  In  his  book  there  is  a  definite,  logical  arrangement  of 
ideas.  The  first  part  consists  of  a  series  of  essays  on  various  topics. 
The  same  subject  is  often  dealt  with  in  many  different  settings  (e.  g.^ 
choice  of  friends,  6^'"  7'^  12'""  37''°).  These  brief  essays  are  grouped 
together,  and  each  group  is  provided  with  a  brief  introduction,  usually 
in  commendation  of  wisdom.  Apparently  the  first  half  of  the  book  con- 
sists of  notes  based  on  Ben  Sira's  early  teachings.  Each  group  of  say- 
ings may  well  represent  his  teachings  on  a  given  occasion.  In  31" 
through  50-^  is  found  the  roll  call  of  Israel's  spiritual  heroes,  beginning 
with  a  psalm  in  praise  of  Jehovah's  majesty  and  power  and  concluding 
with  the  description  of  Simon  the  high  priest.  This  latter  part  of  the 
book  is  clearly  a  pure  literary  creation,  and  was  probably  added  by  him 
as  a  conclusion  to  the  collection  of  his  wisdom  teachings. 

III.  History  of  the  Book.  The  book  containing  the  writings  of  Ben 
Sira  was  known  under  a  variety  of  titles.    The  Latin  Church  followed  the 

182 


HISTORY  OF  THE  BOOK 

Greek  in  calling  it  Ecclesiasticus.  This  terra  was  applied  to  those  books 
which  were  not  in  the  canon,  but  were  held  to  be  edifying  and  proper 
for  public  use  in  the  churches.  The  Hebrew  text  of  Ben  Sira  enjoyed 
wide  currency,  was  frequently  quoted  by  the  later  rabbis,  and  was  often 
referred  to  by  later  Jewish  and  Christian  writers.  It  was  almost  com- 
pletely supplanted  in  time,  however,  by  the  Greek  version.  Jerome  was 
acquainted  with  the  Hebrew  version,  but  most  of  the  Church  fathers 
followed  the  Greek.  Ben  Sira  was  apparently  quoted  by  Jesus,  by 
Paul,  and  by  the  authors  of  the  Epistle  of  James  and  of  the  Epistle  to 
the  Hebrews.  Twenty  or  thirty  such  references  or  allusions  are  found 
in  the  New  Testament.  It  was  also  a  great  favorite  with  the  Church 
fathers,  who  quoted  from  it  even  more  frequendy  than  from  the  other 
Old  Testament  writings.  It  was  adopted  in  the  canon  of  the  Greek  and 
Latin  Church ;  but,  in  common  with  the  other  apocryjihal  books,  was 
given  a  secondary  place  by  the  Protestant  reformers.  Unfortunately, 
during  the  earlier  part  of  the  last  century  it  ceased  to  be  printed  in  the 
standard  editions  of  the  Bible.  The  modern  revival  of  interest  in  the 
apocryphal  books,  both  in  Europe  and  America,  is  tending  to  restore  this 
book,  in  common  with  I  Maccabees,  to  the  position  which  they  certainly 
deserve  in  the  practical  working  canon  of  the  Old  Testament.  The 
discovery  in  1896  of  a  fragment  of  the  original  Hebrew  manuscript  of 
Ben  Sira,  and  the  subsequent  recovery  of  many  other  parts,  have  also 
tended  to  arouse  wide  interest  in  this  hitherto  much-neglected  book. 
Hebrew  portions  of  thirty-nine  out  of  the  fifty-one  chapters  have 
thus  far  been  discovered.  Most  of  them  come  from  about  the 
eleventh  Christian  century  and  are  of  widely  differing  values. 
By  means  of  these,  however,  and  the  quotations  by  the  Jewish 
rabbis  and  Christian  fathers  and  in  the  Greek,  Syriac,  and  Latin 
versions,  it  is  now  possible  to  restore  most  of  the  original  Hebrew 
text,  and  the  resulting  translation  is  far  superior  to  those  based  on 
the  Greek  text. 

IV.  Its  Picture  of  Jewish  Life.  Ben  Sira  has  given  a  vivid  picture 
of  the  domestic,  economic,  and  social  life  of  the  Jews  of  his  age.  The 
debased.  Oriental  conception  of  marriage  had  corrupted  the  atmosphere 
of  the  home.  Wives  were  regarded  as  the  possessions  of  their  husbands, 
and  the  immoral  influence  of  Hellenism  still  further  undermined  the 
purity  and  integrity  of  many  a  Jewish  home.  Greek  customs  and  usages 
were  pervading  Palestine  more  and  more.  Ben  Sira  refers  to  banquets 
with  their  accompaniments  of  music  and  wine.  Even  these  meet  vnth 
his  approval.    Agriculture  and  commerce  are  the  chief  occupations  (A 

183 


THE  TEACHINGS  OF  THE  SON  OF  SIRACH 

the  people.     Jn  general  Ben  Sira  voices  the  wholesome  Jewish  attitude 
*/5\vard  labor: 

Hate  not  laborious  work; 

Neither  agriculture  that  the  Most  High  hath  ordained. 

He  is  especially  strong  in  his  commendation  of  physicians: 

Be  a  friend  to  the  physician,  for  one  has  need  of  him. 

For  verily  God  hath  appointed  him. 

A  physician  receives  his  wisdom  from  God, 

And  from  the  king  he  receives  presents. 

The  knowledge  of  a  physician  causes  him  to  lift  up  his  head. 

And  before  the  princes  may  he  enter. 

God  created  medicines  out  of  the  earth, 

And  a  prudent  man  will  not  be  disgusted  with  them. 

The  following  proverb  has  a  universal  application: 

He  who  sins  before  his  maker, 

Let  him  fall  into  the  hands  of  his  physicianl 

V.  Rise  of  the  Scribes.  The  writings  of  Ben  Sira  reveal  the  close 
connection  between  the  earlier  wise  and  the  later  scribes.  He  lived  at 
the  period  when  the  wise  man  was  turning  scribe.  He  himself  had  a 
profound  respect  for  the  law: 

A  man  of  understanding  will  put  his  trust  in  the  law, 
The  law  is  faithful  to  him  as  when  one  asks  at  the  oracle. 

One  of  his  fundamental  teachings  is  formulated  in  the  proverb: 

Fear  the  Lord  and  glorify  his  priests, 

And  give  him  his  portion  even  as  it  is  commanded. 

Elsewhere  he  declares: 

The  leisure  of  the  scribe  increases  his  wisdom, 
And  he  who  has  no  business  becomes  wise. 

In  his  famous  description  of  the  typical  wise  man  in  39*'"  may  be 
recognized  many  of  the  traits  of  the  later  scribes.  As  the  law  and  the 
ritual  gained  greater  prominence  in  the  life  of  Judaism,  it  was  inevitable 
that  it  should  command  the  attention  of  the  piactical  teachers  of  the 

184 


RISE  OF   THE  SCRIBES 

people.  Thus  gradually  the  wi:;e  devoted  themselves  to  its  study  and 
interpretation,  ever  emphasizing,  however,  thought  and  conduct  as  well 
as  conformity  to  the  ritual.  Scribism  was  greatly  enriched  by  its  lineal 
inheritance  through  the  earlier  wise,  and  long  retained  the  proverbial, 
epigrammatic  form  of  teaching  and  that  personal  attitude  toward  the 
individual  and  his  problems  which  was  one  of  their  greatest  sources  of 
strength.  The  honor  which  the  early  scribes  enjoyed  was  well  deserved. 
Their  methods  were  free  from  the  casuistry  that  characterized  many  of 
the  later  scribes.  They  not  only  copied  and  guarded  the  law,  but  were 
its  interpreters,  applying  it  practically  to  the  every-day  problems  of  the 
people  as  well  as  to  their  duties  in  connection  with  the  temple  service. 
Their  influence  upon  the  Jews  in  this  early  period  was  on  the  whole 
exceedingly  wholesome,  and  from  their  ranks  rose  the  martyrs  that  a 
generation  later  were  ready  to  die  for  the  law. 

VI.  The  Teachings  of  Ben  Sira.  Ben  Sira  was  acquainted  with 
Greek  culture  and  shows  at  several  points  familiarity  with  Greek  ideals 
and  methods  of  thinking,  but  his  point  of  view  in  general  was  distinctly 
Jewish.  He  gathered  together  all  that  was  best  in  the  earlier  teachings 
of  his  race.  In  many  ways  he  represents  an  advance  beyond  all  that 
had  gone  before  and  a  close  approximation  to  the  spirit  and  teachings  of 
Jesus  of  Nazareth.  The  God  of  his  faith  was  omnipotent,  majestic, 
omniscient,  just,  and  merciful.  He  was  the  God  of  all  mankind,  al- 
though it  was  through  Israel  that  he  especially  revealed  himself.  Ben 
Sira  did  not,  like  Ezekiel,  think  of  God  as  far  removed  from  the  life  of 
men  and  as  communicating  with  them  only  through  an^^cls,  but  as  directly 
and  personally  interested  in  the  experiences  and  life  of  the  individual. 
In  23*>  *  he  addresses  him  as  Lord,  Father,  and  Master  of  my  life.  Thus 
he  employs  in  the  personal  sense  the  term  Father,  which  was  most 
often  on  the  lips  of  the  Great  Teacher  of  Nazareth.  In  Ben  Sira's 
stalwart  faith  and  simple  trust  there  is  also  much  that  reminds  us  of  the 
Greater  than  Solomon.  Like  the  teachers  who  had  preceded  him,  he 
had,  however,  no  clear  belief  in  individual  immortality  (cf.  41''*' 
38"'  ").  The  only  reward  after  death  that  he  could  hold  up  before  » 
good  man  was  his  reputation: 

A  good  life  has  its  number  of  days, 
But  a  good  name  continues  forever. 

Consistent  with  the  orthodox  wisdom  school,  he  taught  that  rewards  for 
right  living  came  in  this  life: 

185 


THE  CAUSES  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  STRUGGLE 

Delight  not  in  the  delights  of  the  wicked; 
Remember  they  shall  not  go  unpunished  to  the  grave. 

Even  though  he  lacked  the  inspiration  of  future  hope,  Ben  Sira  taught 
loyalty  to  God  and  fidelity  to  every  duty.  Justice  toward  all,  considera- 
tion for  the  needs  of  the  suffering  and  dependent,  and  generosity  to  the 
poor  are  constantly  urged  by  this  noblest  Jew  of  the  age. 

§  CVIII.     THE  CAUSES  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  STRUGGLE 

Now  there  came  forth  from  [Alexander's  successors]  a 
sinful  root,  Antiochus  Epiphanes,  son  of  Antiochus  the  king, 
who  had  been  a  hostage  at  Rome,  and  he  began  to  reign  in 
the  one  hundred  and  thirty-seventh  year  of  the  Syrian  rule 
(175  B.C.).  In  those  days  there  appeared  certain  lawless 
Israelites  who  persuaded  many,  saying,  Let  us  go  and  make 
a  covenant  with  the  heathen  about  us ;  for  since  we  have 
stood  aloof  from  them  many  evils  have  befallen  us.  And 
the  proposal  met  with  approval.  And  certain  of  the  people 
were  ready  to  do  it,  and  went  to  the  king  who  gave  them 
the  right  to  do  as  the  heathen.  Then  they  built  a  place 
for  gymnastic  exercise  in  Jerusalem  according  to  the  cus- 
toms of  the  heathen.  They  also  made  themselves  uncircum- 
cised,  and,  forsakmg  the  holy  covenant,  fraternized  with  the 
heathen,  and  sold  themselves  to  do  evil. 

Now  when  Antiochus  saw  that  his  authority  was  well 
established,  he  thought  to  reign  over  Egypt,  that  he  might 
reign  over  the  two  kingdoms.  So  he  invaded  Egypt  with  a 
great  multitude,  with  chariots  and  elephants  and  horsemen, 
and  with  a  great  navy.  And  he  made  war  against  Ptolemy, 
king  of  Egypt.  And  Ptolemy  was  defeated  by  him  and  fled, 
and  many  fell  mortally  wounded.  And  they  seized  the  strong 
cities  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  and  he  took  the  spoils  of  Egypt. 
3.  His  Then  after  Antiochus  had  conquered  Egypt  he  returned 
of"the^'^  in  the  hundred  and  forty-third  year  (169  B.C.)  and  went  up 
against  Israel  and  Jerusalem  with  a  great  multitude.  And 
he  insolently  went  into  the  sanctuary,  and  took  the  golden 
altar,  and  the  candelabrum,  and  all  that  belonged  to  the 
table  of  the  showbread,  and  the  cups  for  libations,  and  the 
bowls,  and  the  golden  censers,  and  the  curtain  and  the  gar- 

\«6 


B.C. 

180 

160 
140 
120 

too 

80 

60 

40 

20 

A.D. 

20 

40 

60 
80 


ROME. 


168  Conquest  of  lllaocdoiila      | 


IMPORTANT  EVEST8. 

170    Temple  plundered 

168    Active  perHec'iitlon  of  Jew* 

167-6  VIctorlttH  of  Judas 

165    Kededic'utluu  uf  Temple 

161     Buttle  of  Bethhoron.Dcathof  Xlconor 


149   Third  Punle  AVnr 
146  Cupture  of  Carthage 
and  Corinth 


143   EmbaMsy  to  "Rome 

141    Simon  made  King  and  High  I'riest 


133    Aequlttltlon  of  the  KIngdor 
of  Pergumus 


133   Peace  with  Syria 

130   Samaritan  temple  destroyed 

129  Edomltes  conquered 


111-106    Jugurthine  War 
102-101    Victories  of  Marina 


108  I>e8truetlon  of  Samaria 


100  Birth  of  Julius  Coesur 


86  Capture  of  Athens  by  Sulli 


Capture  of  Gaza 

Uoab  and  Ammon  subdued 


82    Triumph  at  Jerusalem 


73-72  Victories  of  Luoullns 
69   Victory  over  TIgranes  | 

66    Pompey  sent  to  Asia  i 

60    Flrwt  Triumvirate ' 


Pompey  captures  Jerusalem 
Judea'becoiues  a  Roman  Province 


47    Ctesar  Perpetual  Dictator 
44    Ciesar  Assassinated  ; 


Crassus  plunders  the  Temple 
Fnrthlans  capture  Jerusalem 


36    Antony's  Parthian  Mar      , 
31    Battle  of  Aetlum  f 

bulus 


EMl'lUE 


Ilcrod  made  King  of  Judca. 
Samaria  rebuilt 


Augui 


las 

1 

-r 


17    Herod  begins  .rebuilding  the  Temple 


5   BIRTH  OF  JESUS  CHRIST 


ArchelauB  deposed,    Judca  taken, 
under  direct  control  of  Rome 


Enrolment  under  Quirlnlus   and 
a<'tlvlly  of  the  Zealots 


tian 

<hilo« 


Vc»pa>l:iii 


las 
'ios 
a 


Pontius  Pllatc  sent  to  Rome  to  answer 
for  bis  recklessness  In  Judca 


The  short  benign  reign  of 

Agrippu  I>  begins 

An  unsuccessful  rebellion  under 

Thendas 

Kebelllous  outbreaks  begin  which 


continue  until  the  war  of  HO  A.  1>. 
The  people  declare  war  against  Rome 
Jerusalem  and  the  Temple  destroyed 


)!S 


ROME. 


SYRIA. 


JUDEA. 


CIIRO.VOLOGY    OF  THE    MACCABEA.V   AND    ROIIAX   PEKIOD.S 


THE  CAUSES  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  STRUGGLE 

lands;  and  the  decorations  which  were  on  the  front  of  the 
temple — he  scaled  them  all  off.  And  taking  all,  he  went 
away  into  his  own  land,  after  he  had  made  a  great  slaughter, 
and  had  spoken  very  insolently.  Thus  a  great  mourning 
came  to  the  Israelites  wherever  they  were. 

And  the  rulers  and  elders  groaned, 

The  virgins  and  young  men  were  made  feeble. 

And  the  beauty  of  the  women  was  changed. 

Every  bridegroom  took  up  a  lamentation. 

She  that  sat  in  the  marriage  chamber  was  in  heaviness. 

And  the  land  was  shaken  because  of  its  inhabitants. 

And  all  the  house  of  Jacob  was  clothed  with  shame. 

After  two  years  the  king  sent  a  chief  collector  of  tribute  4. 
to  the  cities  of  Judah,  who  came  to  Jerusalem  with  a  great  ph',t' 
multitude.     And  he  spoke  words  of  peace  to  deceive  them,  ^''^j'",^^. 
and  they  trusted  him.     Then  he  attacked  the  city  suddenly,  man- 
and  inflicted  a  severe  blow  on  it,  and  destroyed  many  Israel-  jenf." 
ites.     And  he  took  the  spoils  of  the  city,  and  set  it  on  fire,  ^?,'.^,jy 
and  pulled  down  its  houses  and  walls  on  every  side.     They 
took  captive  the  women  and  the  children,  and  gained  posses- 
sion of  the  cattle.     Then  they  walled  in  the  city  of  David 
with  a  great  and  strong  wall,  with  strong  towers,   and  it 
served  as  a  citadel.     And  they  put  there  sinful  people,  law- 
less men.     And  they  fortified  themselves  in  it.     And  they 
stored   up  weapons  and  food  and,  gathering  together  the 
spoils  of  Jerusalem,  they  stowed  them  away  there. 

And  the  citadel  became  a  great  trap, 
And  served  as  a  place  of  ambush  against  the  sanctuary, 
And  an  evil  adversary  to  Israel  continually. 
And  they  shed  innocent  blood  on  every  side  of  the  sanc- 
tuary 
And  polluted  the  sanctuary. 

Then  the  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem  fled  because  of  this, 
And  she  became  the  habitation  of  foreigners. 
And  she  became  strange  to  those  who  were  bom  in  her, 
And  her  children  forsook  her. 
Her  sanctuary  was  laid  waste  like  a  wilderness, 

187 


THE  CAUSES  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  STRUGGLE 

Her  feasts  were  turned  into  mourning, 

Her  sabbaths  into  a  reproach, 

Her  honor  into  contempt, 
So  great  as  was  once  her  glory,  so  now  was  her  dishonor, 
And  her  exaltation  was  turned  into  mourning. 

5.  Anti-       Then  King  Antiochus  wrote  to  his  whole  kingdom  com- 
com^-^  ^   manding  that  all  should  be  one  people,  and  that  each  should 
to^ceie  Sive  up  his  own  laws.     And  all  the  heathen  nations  yielded 
wor-       to  the  demand  of  the  king.     Many  Israelites  too  consented 
ping       to  worship  him  and  sacrificed  to  the  idols,  and  profaned  the 
jeho-      sabbath.     And  the  king  sent  letters  by  messengers  to  Jeru- 
(41  .S3)      salem  and  the  cities  of  Judah  commanding  them  to  follow 
customs  foreign  to  the  land,  and  to  prevent  the  making  of 
whole  burnt-offerings  and  sacrifices  and  libations  in  the 
sanctuary,  and  to  profane  the  sabbaths  and  feasts,  and  pol- 
lute the  sanctuary  and  the  holy  things,   to  build  altars, 
temples,  and  shrines  for  idols,  and  to  sacrifice  swine's  flesh 
and  unclean  beasts ;  also  to  leave  their  sons  uncircimicised, 
to  stain  their  souls  with  all  manner  of  uncleanness  and  prof- 
anation, so  that  they  might  forget  the  law,  and  change  all 
the  customs.     And  that  whoever  would  not  do  as  the  king 
conmianded  should  die.     Thus  he  wrote  to  his  whole  king- 
dom;   and  appointed  overseers  over  all  the  people,  who 
commanded  the  cities  of  Judah  to  sacrifice  city  by  city. 
Then  many  of  the  people,  every  one  who  had  forsaken  the 
law,  gathered  about  them.     And  they  did  evil  things  in  the 
land,  and  caused  the  Israelites  to  hide  themselves  in  all  their 
places  of  refuge. 

On  the  twenty-fifth  day  of  Chislev,  in  the  one  hundred 
and  forty-fifth  year,  they  built  an  abomination  of  desolation 
upon  the  altar;  and  in  the  cities  of  Judah  on  every  side 
they  built  idol  altars.  And  at  the  doors  of  the  houses  and 
in  the  streets  they  burnt  incense.  And  tearing  in  pieces  the 
books  of  the  law  which  they  found,  they  set  fire  to  them. 
And  wherever  a  book  of  the  covenant  was  found  in  the  pos- 
session of  anyone,  or  if  anyone  obeyed  the  law,  the  king's 
decree  sentenced  him  to  death.  Thus  they  did  in  their 
might  month  by  month  to  the  Israelites  who  were  found  in 
the  cities, 

188 


("•") 


CHARACTER  AND  CONTENTS  OF  I  MACCABEES 

And  on  the  twenty-fifth  day  of  the  month  they  sacrificed  7. 
upon  the  idol  altar  which  was  upon  Jehovah's  sacrfiicial  !!f"hoBe 
altar.     And  the  women  who  had  circumcised  their  children  [^'j^g"' 
they  put  to  death  according  to  the  command.     And  they  law 
hanged  their  babies  about  their  necks,  and  destroyed  their    "^ 
households  with  those  who  had  circumcised  them.     But 
many  in  Israel  made   strong   resolutions  not  to  eat  un- 
clean things,  choosing  to  die  that  they  might  not  be  defiled 
with  the  meats,  and  might  not  profane  the  holy  covenant. 
So   they   died.      And    exceedingly   great  woe   came   upon 
Israel. 

I.  Character  and  Contents  of  I  Maccabees.  The  first  book  of 
Maccabees  is  in  many  ways  the  best  history  that  has  come  down  from 
ancient  Israel.  Luther's  conclusion  that  it  was  more  deserving  of  a 
place  in  the  Old  Testament  canon  than,  for  example,  the  book  of  Esther 
is  now  being  widely  accepted  both  in  theory  and  practice.  The  religious 
spirit  in  which  it  is  written,  the  importance  of  the  events  with  which  it 
deals,  and  the  faithfulness  ^ith  which  they  are  recorded,  all  confirm  this 
conclusion.  It  is  the  work  of  a  devoted  patriot,  who  appears  to  have 
been  personally  acquainted  with  the  events  which  he  records.  He  was 
an  ardent  admirer  of  Judas  Maccabeus,  and  may  well  have  been  one 
of  the  many  valiant  Jews  who  rallied  about  this  sturdy  champion. 
The  author  was  familiar  with  the  early  histories  of  his  race,  for  he  has 
adopted  many  of  the  phrases  peculiar  to  the  books  of  Samuel  and  Kings. 
His  idioms  leave  no  doubt  that  he  wrote  in  Hebrew,  although  this  ver- 
sion has  been  lost. 

The  first  book  of  Maccabees  opens  with  a  brief  reference  to  Alexander 
the  Great  and  to  the  Greek  rulers  who  succeeded  him.  The  detailed 
history,  however,  begins  with  Antiochus  Epiphanes  and  continues  to 
the  death  of  Simon  in  135  B.C.  The  references  in  the  prologue  to  the 
rebuilding  of  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  by  Simon's  son,  John  Hyrcanus, 
between  135  and  125  B.C.,  and  the  absence  of  any  allusions  to  the  more 
important  events  in  the  latter  part  of  his  reign,  indicate  that  his  history 
was  probably  completed  by  125  B.C.  It  was  written,  therefore,  less  than 
half  a  century  after  all  the  events  which  it  records  took  place.  WTiile 
the  author  is  a  true  patriot  and  keenly  interested  in  the  history  of  his 
race,  he  does  not  allow  his  patriotism  to  carry  him  into  exaggeration. 
He  reveals  the  true  historical  spirit  and  a  splendid  reserve  in  recounting 
the  epoch-making  events  that  he  records. 

189 


THE  CAUSES  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  STRUG GI-E 

n.  Character  and  Contents  of  II  Maccabees.  In  marked  con- 
trast with  I  Maccabees  is  the  second  book  which  bears  this  name.  The 
author  states  in  2"""  that  it  was  based  on  an  earlier  five-vokime  history 
written  by  Jason,  of  Cyrene,  in  northern  Africa.  The  final  epitomizer 
of  this  earlier  work  probably  lived  not  long  after  50  B.C.  Jason  himself 
appears  to  have  lived  somewhere  between  160  and  140  B.C.  and  to  have 
written  from  northern  Syria.  The  language  of  the  original  was  evi- 
dently Greek.  The  aim  of  the  author  was  didactic  rather  than  histor- 
ical, and  he  drew  freely  from  popular  tradition.  In  general  character 
it  corresponds  closely  to  the  work  of  the  Chronicler,  who  compiled  the 
Old  Testament  books  of  Chronicles  and  Ezra-Nehemiah.  The  mirac- 
ulous element  is  prominent,  numbers  are  frequently  enlarged,  and  Israel's 
disasters  are  minimized.  Notwithstanding  all  of  its  obvious  faults,  II 
Maccabees  has  preserved  many  important  historical  facts.  Where  its 
testimony  differs  from  that  of  I  Maccabees,  the  latter  in  general  should 
be  followed,  but  its  account  of  the  events  which  led  to  the  Maccabean 
uprising  are  much  more  detailed  than  those  of  I  Maccabees,  which  it 
supplements  at  many  important  points.  With  the  aid  of  these  two  his- 
tories it  is  possible  to  gain  a  remarkably  vivid  and  detailed  conception  of 
the  half-century  that  witnessed  the  reawakening  of  Judaism  and  the 
birth  of  a  new  national  spirit. 

III.  Aggressive  Character  of  Hellenic  Culture.  Jewish  life  and 
religion  were  at  times  almost  uprooted,  but  never  fundamentally  trans- 
formed by  the  Babylonian  and  Persian  conquerors.  Alexander,  how- 
ever, and  those  who  followed  in  his  wake  introduced  an  entirely  new  and 
aggressive  force  into  the  life  and  thought  of  Palestine.  The  centuries 
that  began  with  332  B.C.  witnessed  the  most  important  struggle  that  the 
world  has  ever  seen.  It  was  fought  not  on  the  open  battle-field,  but 
wherever  in  Palestine  and  the  lands  of  the  dispersion  the  currents  of 
that  ancient  life  and  commerce  met  and  mingled.  It  was  the  age-long 
conflict  between  Hellenism  and  Judaism,  those  two  mighty  forces  that 
had  long  been  maturing  in  the  coast  lands  of  the  northern  and  eastern 
Mediterranean.  The  outcome  of  this  contest  was  destined  to  affect  the 
civilization  and  faith  of  all  the  world  throughout  the  ages. 

Judaism  represented  the  life  and  faith  of  a  peasant  people,  while 
Hellenism  was  born  in  the  city.  Wherever  Hellenism  went,  it  found 
expression  in  civic  life.  The  heathen  races  of  Palestine,  the  Phoenicians 
and  Philistines  on  the  coast,  and  the  east-Jordan  peoples  readily  wel- 
comed the  superior  civilization  of  the  conquerors.  It  appealed  power- 
fully to  their  intellectual,  social,  and  aesthetic  sense,  and,  in  the  debased 

190 


CHARACTER  OF  HELLENIC  CULTURE 

form  that  it  assumed  in  the  East,  to  their  passions.  Even  the  Samaritans 
readily  accepted  it;  and  the  city  of  Samaria  was  settled  by  a  colony  of 
Macedonian  soldiers.  The  ancient  cities  of  Gaza,  Askelon,  Accho  under 
the  name  of  Ptolemais,  Tyre,  Sidon,  Damascus,  Bethshean  under  its 
new  name  Scythopolis,  Rabbath-ammon  under  the  name  of  Philadelphia, 
and  most  of  the  important  east-Jordan  cities  were  soon  transformed  into 
active  centres  of  Hellenic  culture.  Civic  pride  and  patriotism  took  pos- 
session of  their  inhabitants.  Most  of  the  cities  had  a  senate  and  mag- 
istrates elected  each  year  by  popular  vote.  Many  of  them  were  adorned 
by  magnificent  public  buildings,  including  a  forum,  theatre,  stadium, 
hippodrome,  and  gymnasium.  Civic  patriotism  took  the  place  of  the 
old  despotism  and  selfish  individualism.  Each  Hellenic  city  gave  to  its 
citizens  new  ideals  and  opportunities.  The  discussions  of  the  forum, 
the  agora,  and  the  gymnasium  inspired  them  with  political,  social,  and 
intellectual  interests.  The  plays  in  the  theatres,  the  races  in  the  hippo- 
drome and  stadium  amazed  and  fascinated  them.  Many  of  the  youths 
were  enlisted  in  the  clubs  that  were  formed  in  connection  with  the 
gymnasium,  and  all  classes  participated  in  the  public  festivities. 

IV.  Contrast  Between  Hellenism  and  Judaism.  In  the  broad 
perspective  of  history  it  is  clear  that  both  Hellenism  and  Judaism  were 
essential  to  the  upbuilding  and  broadening  of  the  human  character  and 
ideals.  Hellenism  in  its  nobler  form  brought  what  Judaism  lacked,  and 
Judaism  was  fitted  to  correct  the  evils  and  fatal  weaknesses  of  Hellenism. 
Ben  Sira  vaguely  recognized  this,  and  sought  to  reconcile  these  two  types 
of  civilization;  but  in  the  second  century  B.C.  men  were  chiefly  aware 
of  the  glaring  contrasts.  Compared  with  the  splendor  of  the  life  in  the 
Greek  cities  that  of  the  orthodox  Jews  seemed  crude  and  barbarous. 
The  intense  horror  with  which  the  Jews  viewed  every  form  of  idolatry 
led  them  to  reject  all  forms  of  art.  Their  hatred  of  sensuality  and  im- 
morality led  them  to  regard  with  aversion  the  sports  and  exercises  of 
the  gymnasium  and  the  attendant  licentiousness.  The  practical  teachers 
of  Israel  looked  with  suspicion  upon  the  subtleties  of  the  different  Greek 
philosophical  schools.  On  the  other  hand,  the  homely,  domestic  joys 
of  the  average  Jew  and  his  intense  devotion  to  the  service  of  the  temple 
and  to  the  faith  of  his  fathers  seemed  contemptible  to  those  familiar 
with  the  brilliant,  voluptuous  life  of  the  Hellenic  cities.  Hellenism  pro- 
tested against  the  narrowness,  barrenness,  and  intolerance  of  Judaism; 
Judaism  protested  against  the  godlessness  and  immorality  of  Hellenism. 
Both  were  right  in  their  protests,  and  yet  each  in  a  sense  needed  the 
other. 

191 


THE  CAUSES  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  STRUGGLE 

V.  Apostasy  of  the  Jews  and  the  Perfidy  of  the  High  Priests. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  second  century  B.C.  the  Judean  state  was  closely 
encircled  by  a  ring  of  Hellenic  cities  and  subjected  on  every  side  to  the 
seductions  of  that  debased  Greek  culture  which  had  taken  firm  root  in 
the  soil  of  Palestine.  As  was  almost  inevitable,  many  of  the  Jewish 
youth  yielded  to  its  attractions.  Distaste  for  the  narrowness  and  austere 
customs  of  their  fathers  begat  in  their  minds  a  growing  contempt  for 
their  race  and  its  religion.  Even  some  of  the  younger  priests  forsook 
the  temple  for  the  gymnasium.  Unconsciously  but  surely  Judaism  was 
drifting  from  its  old  moorings  toward  Hellenism,  until  the  perfidy  of 
its  high  priests  and  the  persecutions  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes  aroused 
it  to  a  full  realization  of  its  peril.  The  apostates  in  Jerusalem  found  a 
leader  in  Jeshua,  who  had  assumed  the  Greek  name  of  Jason.  He  was 
the  brother  of  Onias  HI,  the  reigning  high  priest,  and  had  been  sent  to 
represent  him  at  the  Syrian  court.  There  he  improved  the  opportunity 
by  promising  greater  tribute  to  secure  his  appointment  as  high  priest. 
He  was  soon  outbid,  however,  by  a  certain  renegade  named  INIenelaus, 
who  with  the  aid  of  Syrian  soldiers  drove  Jason  from  Jerusalem  and 
took  his  place  as  head  of  the  hellenizing  party.  The  first  cause,  there- 
fore, of  the  Maccabean  struggle  was  the  apostasy  of  certain  of  the  Jews 
themselves.  Apparently  in  large  numbers  they  abandoned  the  tradi- 
tions of  their  race,  and  assumed  the  Greek  garb  and  customs,  thus  lead- 
ing their  Syrian  rulers  to  believe  that  the  hellenizing  of  the  entire  race 
would  be  comparatively  easy. 

VI.  Character  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes.  The  ruler  who  by  his  in- 
justice and  persecutions  fanned  the  smouldering  flame  of  Jewish  patri- 
otism into  a  mighty  conflagration  was  Antiochus  Epiphanes.  As  a 
youth  he  had  been  educated  at  Rome  with  the  profligate  sons  of  those 
who  ruled  the  Imperial  City.  The  Greek  and  Roman  historians,  es- 
pecially Pol^'bius,  give  vi\'id  portraits  of  this  tyrannical  king.  In  him 
the  prevailing  passion  for  Hellenism  found  extreme  expfession.  To 
dazzle  his  contemporaries  by  the  splendor  of  his  building  enterprises 
and  by  his  dramatic  display  was  his  chief  ambition.  In  gratifying  thus 
his  selfish  ambition  he  drained  the  resources  of  his  kingdom,  and  was 
therefore  obliged  to  resort  to  extreme  measures  to  replenish  his  treasury. 
In  170  B.C.  he  made  a  successful  campaign  into  Egypt.  Two  years 
later  he  again  invaded  the  rich  land  of  the  Nile,  only  to  find  himself  con- 
fronted by  a  Roman  general,  who  peremptorily  ordered  him  to  retreat. 
Rome  was  already  the  chief  power  in  the  eastern  INIediterranean,  and 
Antiochus,  although  in  a  rage,  wisely  decided  to  retire.     It  was  at  this 

192 


CHAHACTER  OF  ANTIOCHUS  EPIPHANES 

inopportune  moment  that  he  found  Jerusalem  in  revolt,  misled  by  a 
false  report  and  by  the  renegade  high  priest  Jason.  Antiochus  not  only 
improved  this  opportunity  to  loot  the  temple  and  slay  many  of  the  in- 
habitants, but  from  this  time  on  conceived  a  bitter  antipathy  to  the 
Jewish  race.  This  antipathy  he  shared  in  common  with  all  the  Greek 
world,  for  already,  as  a  result  of  the  peculiar  religion  and  customs  of 
the  Jews  and  their  success  in  commercial  pursuits,  that  which  is  known 
to-day  as  the  anti-Semitic  spirit  was  fully  developed.  One  of  Antiochus's 
chief  ambitions  was  also  to  hellenize  all  his  subjects,  and  the  Jews  alone 
offered  opposition  to  the  realization  of  this  ambition.  Hence  they  could 
expect  no  mercy  at  the  hands  of  this  selfish,  capricious  despot. 

VII.  Antiochus's  Policy  toward  the  Jews.  The  measures  which 
Antiochus  employed  to  crush  the  faith  of  Judaism  were  relentlessly 
thorough.  He  began  with  the  seizure  of  Jerusalem,  the  tearing  down 
of  its  walls,  the  fortifying  and  garrisoning  of  its  citadel  with  Syrian  sol- 
diers and  apostate  Jews,  and  the  slaughter  of  all  who  refused  to  accede 
to  his  demands.  Not  only  was  the  temple  service  stopped,  but  the  altar 
was  torn  down  and  desecrated  and  a  heathen  altar  to  Zeus — the  abom- 
inable desolation  of  the  book  of  Daniel — was  reared  in  its  place.  On 
this  swine's  flesh  was  sacrificed,  and  the  presence  of  harlots  in  the  sacred 
precincts  completed  its  ceremonial  and  moral  pollution.  All  the  sur- 
viving inhabitants  of  Jerusalem  were  compelled  to  sacrifice  and  pay 
homage  to  the  heathen  gods.  Those  who  retained  copies  of  their  laws 
or  persisted  in  maintaining  the  customs  of  their  fathers  were  slain. 
When  many  fled  to  the  outlying  towns,  emissaries  of  Antiochus  pursued 
them,  demanding  of  each  citizen  public  recognition  of  the  Greek  gods. 
A  majority  of  the  Jews  apparently  yielded  to  these  drastic  measures 
and  joined  the  ranks  of  the  apostates.  Of  the  many  crises  through 
which  Israel  passed  this  was  in  many  ways  the  most  severe;  but  then 
it  gave  to  the  world  some  of  the  noblest  martyrs.  The  early  Christians 
who  perished  for  their  faith  were  inspired  by  the  example  of  their  Master 
and  by  the  hope  of  blessed,  individual  immortality.  To  the  Jews  of  the 
Greek  period,  however,  the  great  calamity  that  overtook  them  came  as 
a  sudden  and  unexpected  blow.  No  clear  hope  of  immortality  at  first 
inspired  them,  for,  like  Ben  Sira  and  the  earlier  teachers  of  the  race,  the 
majority  of  them  probably  regarded  the  life  beyond  death  as  a  passion- 
less existence  in  the  land  of  darkness.  Even  the  ex-pectation  of  family 
or  racial  immortality  seemed  denied  by  the  dark  outlook.  They  died 
as  did  Eleazar,  the  aged  scribe,  simply  because  of  their  devotion  to  the 
God  and  laws  of  their  fathers,  and  because  that  loyalty  meant  more  to 
them  than  life. 

193 


THE  EFFECT  OF  PERSECUTION  ON  THE  JEWS 

§  CrX.     THE  EFFECT  OF  PERSECUTION  ON  THE  JEWS 

i.Fam-  At  that  time  arose  Mattathias  the  son  of  John  the  son  of 
^Maua-  Simeon,  a  priest  of  the  sons  of  Joarib,  from  Jerusalem ;  and 
a%uc  ^®  dwelt  in  Modein.  And  he  had  five  sons,  John,  who  was 
2'*)  '  sumamed  Gaddis,  Simon,  who  was  called  Thassi,  Judas, 
who  was  called  Maccabeus,  Eleazar,  who  was  called  Avaran, 
Jonathan,  who  was  called  Apphus. 

When  he  saw  the  sacrilegious  acts  that  were  being  com- 
mitted in  Judah  and  in  Jerusalem,  he  said, 

2.  His  Woe  to  me !    Why  was  I  bom 

lament  Jq  ggg  ^j^g  j^jj^  ^f  jjjy  people, 


over 


the  fate  And  the  ruin  of  the  holy  city, 

and  ^  And  to  dwell  there  while  it  was  being  given  into  the 

fe'f.f  ^  hands  of  the  foe, 

The  sanctuary  into  the  hands  of  foreigners? 

The  temple  has  become  as  though  it  had  no  glory. 

Its  splendid  vessels  have  been  carried  into  captivity. 

Her  children  have  been  slain  in  the  streets. 

Her  young  men  by  the  sword  of  the  enemy. 

What  people  has  not  taken  possession  of  her  palace, 

And  seized  upon  her  spoils? 

All  her  adornments  have  been  taken  away, 

From  freedom  she  has  been  reduced  to  slavery. 

And  now  our  holy  things,  our  beauty  and  our  glory  have 
been  laid  waste, 

And  the  heathen  have  polluted  them. 

Why  should  we  still  live? 

And  Mattathias  and  his  son  tore  their  clothes,  and  put  on 

sackcloth,  and  mourned  bitterly. 
3.  His  Now  the  king's  officers  who  were  enforcing  the  apostasy, 
^^^f^i!  came  into  the  city  of  Modein  to  sacrifice.  And  many  of 
low  the  Israel  went  over  to  them,  but  Mattathias  and  his  sons  offered 
m^ds  resistance.  Then  the  king's  officers  said  to  Mattathias,  You 
och^u°*^''  are  a  ruler  and  a  man  honored  in  this  city  and  strength- 
en 22)      ened  by  sons  and  brothers.     Now  therefore  come  first  and 

do  what  the  king  commands,  as  all  the  nations  have  done, 

the  men  of  Judah  too,  with  those  who  remain  in  Jerusalem. 

Then  you  and  your  house  shall  be  in  the  number  of  the  king's 

194 


l/ltHermon  ^X-t 

»J«0/«.   I)i>iiin> 


MAP  OF 

PALESTINE, 

CONTAINING  PLACES  FOB 
3IACCABEAN  PERIOD. 

p       5      j,o i.O 

Scale  of  nilei. 


8traton'8  TowerA 


^ 
«» 


Caphareaba 
f  Antipat' 


Joppa  J 


^ 


Ijddi 


^    ^jalon    uiipab*  f      . 

Jernsalciu «»     ^    -^ 


philwbliiUa 


tbeA>I>oli 


BetUebeiu 

»  ^Herodi) 

>  AduUitD 

,Beth»ur  •  Te«o» 
~^    •HUhul 


THE  EFFECT  OF  PERSECUTION  ON  THE  JEWS 

friends,  and  you  and  your  sons  shall  be  honored  with  silver 
and  gold  and  many  gifts.  But  Mattathias  replied  with  a 
loud  voice,  If  all  the  nations  included  in  the  king's  domin- 
ion obey  him,  in  that  each  is  untrue  to  the  worship  of  his 
fathers  and  chooses  to  follow  his  command,  yet  I  and  my 
sons  and  my  brothers  will  walk  in  the  covenant  made  with 
our  fathers.  Heaven  forbid  that  we  should  forsake  the  law 
and  the  ordinances.  We  will  not  listen  to  the  king's  words, 
to  go  aside  from  our  worship,  either  to  the  right  hand  or  to 
the  left. 

And  when  he  had  finished  saying  these  things  a  Jew  4.  His 
came  in  sight  of  all  to  sacrifice  on  the  altar  that  was  in  llSnT- 
Modein  according  to  the  king's  command.     When  Matta-  ^'_^^ 
thias  saw  it,  his  zeal  was  kindled  and  he  trembled  inwardly,  open 
And  he  let  his  anger  take  possession  of  him,  as  was  right,  ITcT 
and  he  ran  and  slew  the  Jew  upon  the  altar.     Also  he  killed  ^"^  '*> 
at  that  time  the  king's  officer,  who  was  compelling  men  to 
sacrifice,  and  pulled  down  the  altar.     Thus  he  showed  his 
zeal  for  the  law,  just  as  Phinehas  did  in  the  case  of  Zimri 
the  son  of  Salu.    Then  Mattathias  cried  out  in  the  city  with 
a  loud  voice,  saying.  Whoever  is  zealous  for  the  law  and 
will  maintain  the  covenant,  let  him  follow  me.     And  he  and 
his  sons  fled  into  the  mountains,  and  left  behind  all  that  they 
had  in  the  city. 

Then  many  who  sought  justice  and  right  went  down  into  s. 
the  wilderness,  to  dwell  there  with  their  sons  and  wives  and  shTps* 
cattle,  because  the  evils  were  becoming  ever  harder  for  them  ^|'"/,„j,. 
to  bear.     And  it  was  reported  to  the  king's  officers  and  to  ij-rul 
the  forces  that  were  in  Jerusalem,  the  city  of  David,  that  fugi- 
certain  men  who  had  broken  the  king's  command  had  gone  p^f^ 
down  into  the  hiding  places  in  the  wilderness.     So  many 
pursued  after  them,  and  having  overtaken  them  encamped 
against  them,  and  drew  up  the  Une  of  battle  against  them  on 
the  sabbath  day.     And  they  said  to  them.  Things  have  gone 
far  enough,  now  come  forth  and  obey  the  command  of  the 
king  and  you  shall  live.     But  they  said.  We  will  not  come 
forth,  neither  will  we  do  as  the  king  commands,  to  profane 
the  sabbath  day.     Then  they  at  once  offered  them  battle. 
But  they  made  no  resistance,  neither  did  they  cast  a  stone 
at  them,  nor  stop  up  the  places  of  concealment,  for  they  said, 

195 


THE  EFFECT  OF  PERSECUTION  ON  THE  JEWS 

Let  us  all  die  in  our  innocency:  let  heaven  and  earth  bear 
witness  for  us,  that  you  put  us  to  death  unjustly.  Then  they 
rose  up  against  them  in  battle  on  the  sabbath,  and  thus  they 
died  with  their  wives  and  children  and  cattle,  to  the  number 
of  a  thousand  souls. 

6.  .  When  Mattathias  and  his  friends  knew  it  they  mourned 
JJ^llY  bitterly  over  them.  And  they  said  to  each  other,  If  we  all 
success-  Jo  as  our  brothers  have  done,  and  do  not  fight  against  the 
armed  heathen  for  our  lives  and  our  customs,  they  will  now  quickly 
Itncl^'  destroy  us  from  off  the  earth.  So  they  took  counsel  that 
(*'"")      day,  saying,  Whoever  shall  come  against  us  for  battle  on  the 

sabbath  day,  let  us  fight  against  him,  and  we  will  by  no 
means  all  die,  as  our  brothers  died  in  the  hiding  places. 
Then  there  gathered  together  to  them  a  company  of  Hasi- 
deans,  brave  men  of  Israel,  every  one  who  offered  himself 
willingly  for  the  law.  And  all  who  fled  from  the  evils  were 
added  to  them,  and  strengthened  them.  And  they  mustered 
a  host. 

And  smote  the  sinners  in  their  anger 

And  the  lawless  in  their  wrath. 

And  the  rest  fled  to  the  heathen  for  safety.  Also  Mattathias 
and  his  friends  went  about  and  pulled  down  the  altars,  and 
circumcised  by  force  the  children  who  were  uncircumcised, 
as  many  as  they  found  in  the  territory  of  Israel.  Thus  they 
pursued  the  sons  of  arrogance,  and  the  work  prospered  in 
their  hand.  They  took  the  direction  of  affairs  out  of  the 
hands  of  the  heathen  and  of  the  kings,  nor  did  they  yield 
ground  to  the  sinner. 

7.  When  the  time  approached  for  Mattathias  to  die  he  said 
^eiT"  to  his  sons.  Now  insolence  and  insult  have  grown  strong, 
uiLiCn     ^^^  ^  period  of  reversals  has  come,  with  flaming  wrath. 

oY 

thfil^"    Now,  my  sons,  be  zealous  for  the  law, 

^"^^      And  give  your  lives  for  the  covenant  of  your  fathers. 

And  remember  the  deeds  which  your  forefathers  did  in  their 

generations ; 
And  win  great  glory  and  everlasting  fame. 
Was  not  Abraham  found  faithful  when  tested? 
And  it  was  counted  to  him  as  righteousness, 

196 


THE  EFFECT  OF  PERSECUTION  ON  THE  JEWS 

Joseph  in  the  time  of  his  distress  kept  the  commandment, 

And  became  lord  of  Egypt. 
Phinehas  our  father,  because  he  was  so  zealous, 

Received  the  covenant  of  an  everlasting  priesthood. 
Joshua  for  carrying  out  the  word  of  God, 

Became  a  ruler  in  Israel. 
Caleb  for  bearing  witness  in  the  congregation, 

Obtained  a  heritage  in  the  land. 
David  for  being  merciful. 

Inherited  a  kingly  throne  for  ever  and  ever. 
Elijah  because  he  was  so  zealous  for  the  law. 

Was  taken  up  into  heaven. 
Hananiah,  Azariah,  Mishael  believed. 

And  were  rescued  from  the  flame. 
Daniel  because  of  his  innocence, 

Was  delivered  from  the  mouth  of  lions. 
And  thus  consider  from  generation  to  generation: 
None  who  put  their  trust  in  him  ever  want  strength. 
Then  be  not  afraid  of  the  words  of  a  sinful  man; 
For  his  glory  shall  be  dung  and  worms. 
To-day  he  is  exalted,  but  to-morrow  he  cannot  be  found, 
Because  he  has  returned  to  dust,  and  the  memory  of  him 

has  perished. 
Then  my  sons  be  strong,  and  show  yourselves  men  in  behalf 

of  the  law; 
By  so  doing  you  shall  obtain  glory. 

And,  behold,  Simon  your  brother,  I  know  that  he  is  a  man  g.  iiis 
of  counsel;  ^Pf„t. 

Obey  him  always;  let  him  be  your  adviser.  simo°' 

Judas  Maccabeus,  too,  has  been  a  man  of  war  from  his  and°" 
youth;  fily 

He  shall  be  your  captain,  and  fight  the  battle  of  the  people. 

And  take  to  yourselves  all  law-abiding  men, 

And  avenge  the  wrong  of  your  people. 

Render  a  recompense  to  the  heathen. 

And  give  heed  to  the  commands  of  the  law. 

9.  His 
death 

Thus  he  blessed  them  and  was  gathered  to  his  fathers,  nnd 
And  he  died  in  the  one  hundred  and  forty-sixth  year,  and  (iV^jo) 

197 


THE  EFFECT  OF  PERSECUTION  ON  THE  JEWS 

his  sons  buried  him  in  the  sepulchres  of  his  fathers  at 
Modein,  and  all  Israel  made  a  great  lamentation  for  him. 

10. .  ^        In  the  first  year  of  Belshazzar  king  of  Babylon  Daniel  had 
^ti^on  °  a  dream  and  visions  of  his  head  upon  his  bed.     Then  he 
fouT^     wrote  down  the  dream:    I  saw  in  my  vision  by  night,  and 
beasts     behold,  the  four  winds  of  heaven  broke  forth  upon  the  great 
jRf)"'     sea.     And  four  great  beasts  came  up  from  the  sea,  each 
different  from  the  other.     The  first  was  like  a  lion  and  had 
eagle's  wings.     I  looked  until  its  wings  were  stripped  off, 
and  it  was  lifted  up  from  the  earth,  and  made  to  stand  upon 
two  feet  as  a  man ;  and  a  man's  heart  was  given  to  it.     And 
behold,  a  second  beast,  like  a  bear ;  and  it  was  raised  up  on 
one  side,  and  three  ribs  were  in  its  mouth,  between  its  teeth ; 
and  they  said  thus  to  it:   Arise,  devour  much  flesh.     After 
this  I  beheld,  and  lo,  another  like  a  leopard,  which  had  upon 
its  sides  four  wings  of  a  bird;  and  the  beast  had  also  four 
heads,  and  dominion  was  given  to  it.     After  this  I  saw  in 
the  night  visions,  and  behold,  a  fourth  beast,  terrible  and 
fearful,  and  exceedingly  strong ;  and  it  had  great  iron  teeth ; 
it  devoured  and  broke  in  pieces  and  stamped  the  rest  with 
its  feet ;  and  it  differed  from  all  the  beasts  that  were  before 
it;    and  it  had  ten  horns.     I  gave  attention  to  the  horns, 
and  behold  another  little  horn  came  up  amongst  them,  be- 
fore which  three  of  the  first  horns  were  plucked  up  by  the 
roots ;  and  behold,  in  this  horn  were  eyes,  like  the  eyes  of  a 
man,  and  a  mouth  speaking  great  things. 
n.  The       I  waited  until  thrones  were  set  up,  and  an  aged  one  took 
tfif^'      his  seat;  his  clothing  was  white  as  snow,  and  his  hair  like 
(°"S)      spotless  wool,  his  throne  was  fiery  flames,  its  wheels  burn- 
ing fire.     A  fiery  stream  issued  and  came  forth  before  him; 
thousands  of  thousands  ministered  to  him,  and  ten  thousand 
times  ten  thousand  stood  before  him ;  the  judgment  was  set 
and  the  books  were  opened. 
12.  I  looked  at  that  time  because  of  the  sound  of  the  great 

throw     words  which  the  horn  spoke — I  looked  even  until  the  beast 
helsvs     ^^^  slain,  and  its  body  destroyed,  and  given  to  be  fuel  for 
("■  '*)     the  fire.     Also  the  rule  of  the  rest  of  the  beasts  was  taken 
away;   but  their  lives  were  prolonged  for  a  fixed  time  and 
•eason. 

198 


Ques- 
tion re- 


THE  EFFECT  OF  PERSECUTION  ON  THE  JEWS 

I  saw  in  the  night  visions,  and  behold,  there  came  with  i3 
the  clouds  of  heaven  one  like  to  a  son  of  man,  and  he  came  unh^^' 
even  to  the  Aged  One,  and  was  brought  near  before  him.  '"«"'■ 
And  there  was  given  him  dominion  and  glory,  and  sover-  etemai 
eignty,  that  all  the  peoples,  nations,  and  languages  should  Zfd^' 
serve  him;   his  dominion  is  an  everlasting  dominion  which  rfomin- 
shall  not  pass  away,  and  his  sovereignty  one  which  shall  ('"'•) 
not  be  destroyed. 

As  for  me,  Daniel,  my  spirit  was  grieved  by  reason  of  this,   i4.  in- 
and  the  visions  of  my  head  troubled  me.     I  came  near  to  one  latu)"]? 
of  those  who  stood  by,  and  asked  him  the  truth  concerning  "^  \^^ 
all  this.     So  he  told  me  and  made  me  know  the  interpreta-  ("-") 
tion  of  the  things.     These  four  great  beasts  are  four  kings 
who  shall  arise  out  of  the  earth.     But  the  saints  of  the  Most 
High  shall  receive  the  sovereignty,  and  possess  the  sover- 
eignty forever,  even  for  ever  and  ever. 

Then  I  desired  to  know  the  truth  concerning  the  fourth  is 
beast,  which  was  different  from  all  of  them,  exceeding  ter 
rible,  whose  teeth  were  of  iron,  and  its  nails  of  brass ;  which  fhe*^'°^ 
devoured,  broke  in  pieces,  and  stamped  the  rest  with  its  jourth 
feet ;   and  concerning  the  ten  horns  that  were  on  its  head,  and  the 
and  the  other  horn  which  came  up,  and  before  which  three  gueriug 
horns  fell — it  that  had  eyes,  and  a  mouth  that  spoke  great  ^om 
things,  and  it  appeared  to  be  greater  than  the  rest.     I  looked, 
and  the  same  horn  made  war  with  the  saints,  and  prevailed 
against  them,  until  the  Aged  One  came,  and  judgment  was 
given  to  the  saints  of  the  Most  High,  and  the  fixed  time  came 
that  the  saints  possessed  the  sovereignty. 

Thus  he  said,  The  fourth  beast  shall  be  a  fourth  kingdom  i6. 
upon  earth,  which  shall  be  different  from  all  the  kingdoms ;  Oder's 
and  shall  devour  the  whole  earth,  and  shall  tread  it  down,  l^j'^'j^e 
and  break  it  in  pieces.     And  as  for  the  ten  horns,  out  of  this  rule  of 
kingdom  shall  ten  kings  arise ;  and  another  shall  arise  after  ;h"is° 
them;    and  he  shall  be  different  from  the  former,  and  he  EpIpH- 
shall  put  down  three  kings.     And  he  shall  speak  words  («»") 
against  the  Most  High,  and  shall  continually  harass  the 
saints  of  the  Most  High;   and  he  shall  think  to  change  the 
fixed  times  and  the  law;   and  they  shall  be  given  into  his 
hand  until  a  time  and  times  and  half  a  time.     But  the  judg- 
ment shall  be  set,  and  they  shall  take  away  his  kingdom,  to 

199 


THE  EFFECT  OF  PERSECUTION  ON  THE  JEWS 

consume  and  to  destroy  finally.  And  the  sovereignty,  and 
the  dominion,  and  the  greatness  of  the  kingdoms  under  the 
whole  heaven,  shall  surely  be  given  to  the  people  of  the  saints 
of  the  Most  High;  his  sovereignty  is  an  everlasting  sover- 
eignty, and  all  dominions  shall  serve  and  obey  him. 

And  at  that  time  Michael  shall  stand  up,  the  great  prince 
who  stands  for  the  children  of  my  people;  and  there  shall 
be  a  time  of  affliction  such  as  there  never  was  since  there 
was  a  nation,  even  to  that  time ;  and  at  that  time  thy  people 
shall  be  delivered,  every  one  who  shall  be  found  written  in 
the  book.  And  many  of  those  who  sleep  in  the  dust  of  the 
earth  shall  awake,  some  to  everlasting  life,  and  some  to 
shame  and  everlasting  contempt.  And  they  who  are  wise 
shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of  the  firmament;  and  they 
who  turn  many  to  righteousness  as  the  stars  forever  and  ever. 

I.  The  Uprising  Led  by  Mattathias.  The  persecutions  of  Anti- 
ochus  Epiphanes  had  at  last  reached  the  point  where  patient  submission 
and  even  martyrdom  ceased  to  be  a  virtue.  His  agents  had  successfully 
carried  the  merciless,  hellenizing  campaign  throughout  practically  all 
the  territory  of  Judea.  It  was  not  until  they  reached  its  extreme  north- 
western border  that  they  met  the  first  open  opposition.  The  little  town 
of  Modein  lay  out  on  the  edge  of  the  great  plain  where  the  central  hills 
of  Palestine  break  down  into  low  foot-hills.  These  are  intersected  by 
rushing  brooks  and  clear,  crystal  streams  that  descend  from  the  heights 
above.  The  town  lay  on  a  rounded  hill  about  one-third  of  a  mile  in 
diameter  that  rises  abruptly  in  a  series  of  steep  terraces.  The  Wady 
Malakeh  encircled  it  on  the  south  and  west.  On  the  northeastern  side, 
where  lies  the  modern  town,  was  a  broad  shoulder  of  land  slightly  lower 
and  larger  than  the  acropolis.  In  ancient  times  it  was  probably  the  site 
of  the  lower  city.  Deep,  encircling  valleys  on  the  north  and  east  com- 
pleted the  natural  defences  of  this  border  village  that  became  the  altar  of 
Jewish  freedom.  To-day  the  scattered  ruins  of  the  acropolis  are  cov- 
ered in  spring-time  with  a  luxuriant  growth  of  grain  and  olive  trees, 
making  it  one  of  the  most  picturesque  mounds  in  Palestine. 

It  is  surprising  that  the  revolt  against  the  cruel  tyranny  of  Antiochus 
was  led  by  an  aged  priest.  Like  many  priests,  his  home  was  outside 
Jerusalem,  Evidently  he  was  one  of  the  chief  men  of  Modein.  He 
was  descended  from  the  family  of  Hasmon,  hence  his  descendants,  who 
ultimately  became  the  independent  rulers  of  their  race,  are  sometimes 

200 


THE  UPRISING  LED  BY  MATTATHIAS 

called  the  Hasmonians.  In  Mattathias  the  long-suppressed,  hot  indig- 
nation of  the  Jewish  race  at  last  found  expression.  In  slaying  the  apos- 
tate Jew  and  Syrian  official,  Mattathias  evoked  that  warlike  spirit  which 
had  in  earlier  days  given  Israel  a  home  and  a  place  among  the  nations. 
His  impulsive  act  inaugurated  a  new  chapter  in  Israel's  life  and  thought. 
In  its  far-reaching  consequences  it  was  comparable  only  to  Moses'  im- 
pulsive slaying  of  the  Egyptian  taskmaster. 

II.  Party  of  the  Hasideans  or  Pious.  It  was  fortunate  that  Mat- 
tathias had  five  able,  mature  sons  to  support  him.  Simon,  the  eldest, 
was  already  famous  in  council.  Judas,  who  bore  the  surname  Macca- 
beus (whence  the  word  Maccabees),  soon  proved  himself  a  great  military 
leader.  Jonathan  combined  the  qualities  of  Simon  and  Judas  with 
a  certain  craftiness  that  makes  him  the  least  attractive  of  the  three. 
Eleazar  later  proved  on  the  battle-field  that  he  had  the  qualities  that 
make  heroes  and  martyrs.  Among  the  Judean  hills,  and  especially  in 
the  barren,  almost  inaccessible  fastnesses  that  descend  in  a  series  of  ter- 
races from  the  central  plateau  to  the  Dead  Sea,  Mattathias  and  his  fol- 
lowers found  refuge.  Hither  many  patriotic  Jews  had  already  fled. 
The  Syrian  mercenaries,  however,  led  by  the  relentless,  apostate  Jews, 
pursued  them,  and,  knowing  their  scruples,  attacked  them  on  the  sab- 
bath day  and  pitilessly  slaughtered  them.  Learning  from  this  a-wful 
example,  Mattathias  and  his  sons  wisely  decided  that  it  was  more  im- 
portant to  fight  for  their  lives  than  to  die  for  a  mere  institution.  They 
soon  attracted  to  their  standard  all  who  were  still  faithful  to  the  law. 
Chief  among  these  were  those  known  as  the  Hasideans  or  Pious.  They 
were  the  spiritual  successors  of  the  pious  or  afflicted,  whose  woes  are 
voiced  in  the  earlier  psalms  of  the  Psalter  (§  XLMF).  They  were  also 
the  forerunners  of  the  party  of  the  Pharisees,  which  was  one  of  the 
products  of  the  Maccabean  struggle.  In  them  faith  and  patriotism 
were  so  blended  that,  like  Cromwell's  Ironsides,  they  were  daunted  by 
no  odds.  At  first  they  depended  upon  the  guerilla  type  of  warfare,  to 
which  the  hills  of  Judea  were  especially  adapted.  By  enforcing  the  law 
of  circumcision,  by  punishing  the  apostates,  and  by  attacking  straggling 
Syrian  bands,  they  encouraged  the  faltering  Jews,  and  intimidated  the 
agents  of  Antiochus.  Mattathias  soon  died,  lea^•ing  the  leadership  to 
his  third  son,  Judas.  The  poem  recording  his  dying  injunctions  voices 
the  inspiration  that  came  at  this  time  to  Israel's  patriots  from  their 
nation's  past,  and  that  supreme  devotion  to  the  law  and  dauntless  cour- 
age that  animated  the  leaders  in  this  great  movement. 

III.  Date  of  the  Visions  in  Daniel  7-12.  A  parallel  but  different 
type  of  character  and  hope  is  reflected  in  the  latter  part  of  the  book  of 

201 


THE  EFFECT  OF  PERSECUTION  ON  THE  JEWS 

Daniel.  In  the  form  of  visions  or  predictions,  these  chapters  interpret 
the  meaning  of  the  great  world  movements  from  the  beginning  of  the 
Babylonian  to  the  end  of  the  Greek  period.  Each  vision  culminates  in 
a  symbolic  but  detailed  description  of  the  rule  and  persecutions  of  An- 
tiochus  Epiphanes.  Several  passages  describe  the  destructive  policies 
of  this  Syrian  ruler  almost  as  vividly  as  the  books  of  Maccabees  (Dan. 
gn,  12).  -' j^.  (Antiochus)  magnified  itself  even  to  the  Prince  of  the  Host 
(Jehovah),  and  took  away  from  him  the  daily  sacrifice,  and  cast  down 
the  place  of  his  sanctuary,  and  set  up  the  sacrilegious  thing  over  the  daily 
sacrifice,  and  cast  down  truth  to  the  ground,  and  did  it  and  prospered." 
Daniel  IP"-"  contains  a  re\aew  of  the  chief  events  of  Antiochus's 
reign.  This  description  closes  with  the  prediction:  "He  shall  plant  his 
palace  between  the  INIediterranean  and  the  glorious  holy  mountain;  so 
he  shall  come  to  his  end  and  none  shall  help  him."  Contemporary 
records  indicate,  however,  that  Antiochus  died  while  engaged  in  a  cam- 
paign in  distant  Persia  and  not  in  western  Palestine  as  the  author  of 
Daniel  anticipated.  In  the  other  visions,  after  the  description  of  Anti- 
ochus's persecutions,  the  details  suddenly  give  place  to  general  predic- 
tions, implying  that  at  this  point  the  author  turned  from  the  contempla- 
tion of  past  and  present  events  to  that  which  was  to  him  future.  The 
great  victories  of  Judas  and  his  followers  that  led  to  the  restoration  of 
the  temple  in  165  B.C.  are  nowhere  mentioned.  In  IP*  is  found  an 
allusion  to  the  Maccabean  uprising:  "Now  when  they  are  falling  they 
shall  be  helped  with  a  little  help;  but  many  shall  join  themselves  to 
them  with  false  protestations."  This  movement,  clearly,  is  not  regarded 
by  the  author  as  significant.  The  date  of  these  \'isions,  therefore,  may 
be  fixed  with  great  confidence  between  the  years  168  and  166  B.C. 

IV.  Their  Real  Character  and  Aim.  In  interpreting  these  visions 
it  is  important  to  note  that  they  belong  to  the  so-called  apocalyptic  type 
of  Hterature.  Already  Ezekiel  and  Zechariah  had  employed  the  com- 
plex symbolism  of  the  apocalypse  to  stir  the  imagination  and  strengthen 
the  faith  of  their  discouraged  countrymen.  The  aim  of  the  author  of 
the  closing  chapters  of  Daniel  was  primarily  to  present  a  religious  phi- 
losophy of  history.  Through  the  rise  and  fall  of  nations  Jehovah's 
purpose  was  slowly  but  surely  being  realized.  They  are  the  expression 
of  the  eternal  optimism  of  the  prophets.  They  voice  their  deathless 
hope  that  "the  best  is  yet  to  be."  They  were  intended  to  encourage 
those  in  the  midst  of  persecution  with  the  assurance  that  God  was  still 
in  his  heaven,  and  that  all  would  yet  be  right  with  his  world. 

V.  The  Four  Heathen  Kingdoms  and  the  Kingdom  of  God.  In 
the  symbolism  of  the  prophet  the  four  beasts  of  Daniel  7  represented 

202 


THE  FOUR  HEATHEN  KINGDOMS 

the  Chaldean,  Medean,  Persian,  and  Greek  Empires.  The  fourth  beast 
with  iron  teeth  that  devoured  and  broke  in  pieces  the  rest  was  clearly 
the  empire  of  Alexander,  and  the  little  horn  that  sprang  up  was  the 
little  horn  which  gored  and  mangled  the  helpless  people  of  Jehovah. 
Opposed  to  the  four  beasts  which  represented  the  angels,  or  demons,  the 
champions  of  each  of  the  great  heathen  kingdoms,  was  Israel's  patron 
angel  Michael.  It  is  this  angel  that  is  apparently  referred  to  in  7"  as 
coming  from  heaven,  and  in  appearance  like  to  a  son  of  man.  At  Je- 
hovah's direction  he  was  to  establish  a  glorious,  universal  kingdom,  the 
citizens  of  which  were  to  be  the  saints,  the  faithful  Jews  who  remained 
loyal  to  Jehovah  during  the  long,  cruel  persecutions.  Not  only  those 
who  survived  but  the  martyrs  sleeping  in  the  dust  of  the  earth  were  to 
awake  and  receive  their  glorious  reward.  The  apostates  were  to  be 
sentenced  to  everlasting  shame  and  contempt.  The  wise  teachers  and 
martyrs  who  by  word  and  example  had  striven  to  keep  their  race  loyal 
to  Jehovah  were  to  be  exalted  in  the  coming  messianic  kingdom.  Thus 
these  visions  reveal  the  hopes  that  inspired  certain  of  the  Jewish  race 
in  its  period  of  supreme  trial:  the  belief  that  Jehovah  through  his  angel 
would  speedily  overthrow  the  power  of  the  heathen  persecutor,  that  he 
would  establish  a  universal  kingdom  in  which  his  own  people  should 
have  chief  place,  and  finally  that  even  the  bonds  of  death  would  not 
hold  those  who  had  died  for  the  law.  Thus  at  last  out  of  this  struggle 
Judaism  emerged  with  a  new-found  faith  in  individual  immortality.  It 
was  still  bound  up  in  the  belief  in  the  bodily  resurrection,  but  at  last  the 
imperishable  worth  of  the  individual  had  become  one  of  the  corner- 
stones of  Israel's  relision. 


§  ex.     THE  VICTORIES  THAT  GAVE  THE  JEWS  RELIGIOUS 

LIBERTY 

Then  his  son  Judas,  who  was  called  Maccabeus,  rose  up  i. 


Cour- 
age, 


in  his  place.     And  all  his  brothers  helped  him,  as  did  all 
those  who  had  supported  his  father,  and  they  fought  with  pj;^^;^j 
gladness  the  battle  of  Israel.  valiant 

^  deeds  of 

Judas 

He  spread  far  and  wide  the  fame  of  his  glory  3iJ!*"*^' 

And  put  on  his  breastplate  like  a  giant. 
And  girded  on  his  weapons  of  war. 
And  set  battles  in  array. 
Protecting  the  army  with  his  sword. 
203 


VICTORIES  THAT  GAVE  JEWS  RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY 

He  was  like  a  lion  in  his  deeds, 

And  as  a  lion's  whelp  roaring  for  prey. 

He  pursued  the  lawless,  seeking  them  out, 

And  he  burnt  up  those  who  troubled  his  people. 

The  lawless  shrunk  for  fear  of  him. 

And  all  the  workers  of  lawlessness  were  greatly  terrified ; 

And  deliverance  was  attained  through  him. 

He  angered  many  kings. 

And  made  Jacob  glad  with  his  acts; 

And  his  memory  is  blessed  forever. 

He  went  about  among  the  cities  of  Judah, 

And  destroyed  the  godless  from  the  land. 

And  turned  away  the  wrath  of  God  from  Israel. 

And  he  was  renowned  to  the  ends  of  the  earth. 

Then  ApoUonius  gathered  the  heathen  together  and  a 
great  army  from  Samaria  to  fight  against  Israel.  And  when 
Judas  learned  of  it,  he  went  out  to  meet  him,  and  defeated 
and  slew  him;  and  many  fell  mortally  wounded,  while  the 
rest  fled.  And  they  captured  their  spoils,  and  Judas  took 
the  sword  of  ApoUonius,  with  which  he  fought  all  his 
days. 

When  Seron,  the  commander  of  the  army  of  Syria,  heard 
that  Judas  had  gathered  a  large  force  of  faithful  men  about 
him,  who  went  with  him  to  war,  he  said,  I  will  make  myself 
famous  and  gain  renown  in  the  kingdom;  for  I  will  fight 
with  Judas  and  those  with  him,  who  are  defying  the  com- 
mand of  the  king.  And  there  went  up  with  him  also  a 
mighty  army  of  the  godless  to  help  him,  to  take  vengeance 
on  the  Israelites. 

As  he  approached  the  ascent  of  Bethhoron,  Judas  went 
forth  to  meet  him  with  a  small  company.  But  when  they 
saw  the  army  coming  to  meet  them,  they  said  to  Judas, 
How  shall  we,  few  as  we  are,  be  able  to  battle  against  so 
great  a  multitude?  and  we  are  faint  also,  having  tasted  no 
food  to-day.  Then  Judas  said.  It  is  an  easy  thing  for  many 
to  be  shut  up  in  the  hands  of  a  few;  and  with  Heaven  it  is 
equally  easy  to  save  by  many  or  by  few ;  for  victory  in  battle 
does  not  depend  upon  the  size  of  an  army,  but  from  Heaven 
comes  the  strength.     They  come  to  us  full  of  insolence  and 

204 


Defeat 
and 


VICTORIES  THAT  GAVE  JEWS  RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY 

lawlessness,  to  destroy  us  with  our  wives  and  children  and 
to  plunder  us ;  but,  as  for  us,  we  are  fighting  for  our  lives 
and  our  laws.  And  he  himself  will  crush  them  before  our 
face;  so  do  not  be  afraid  of  them. 

Now  when  he  had  finished  speaking,  he  leaped  suddenly  5. 
upon  them,  and  Seron  and  his  army  were  put  to  flight  before 
him.     And  they  pursued  them  by  the  descent  of  Bethhoron  ^je*}*^ 
to  the  plain,  and  there  fell  of  them  about  eight  hundred  men ;  Syrians 
but  the  rest  fled  into  the  land  of  the  Philistines.  ^'''  "^ 

Now  the  fear  of  Judas  and  his  brothers  and  the  dread  of  6. 
them  began  to  fall  upon  the  nations  round  about  them,  ur^^lo 
And  his  reputation  reached  the  king,  for  every  nation  was  jjjg''"® 
teUing  of  the  battles  of  Judas.     But  when  King  Antiochus  Jews 
heard  these  things,  he  was  filled  with  indignation  and  sent  refiii*" 
and  gathered  together  all  the  forces  of  his  realm,  a  very  ^^^jf^f 
strong  army.     And  he  opened  his  treasury  and  gave  his  Syrian 
forces  pay  for  a  year,  and  commanded  them  to  be  ready  for  u7y  ■"' 
every  emergency.     And  seeing  that  money  was  scarce  in   ^"^  "^ 
his  treasury  and  that  the  tributes  of  the  country  were  small, 
because  of  the  dissension  and  calamity  which  he  had  brought 
upon  the  land,  for  the  purpose  of  taking  away  the  laws  which 
had  been  in  force  from  the  earliest  days,  he  feared  that  he 
should  not  have  enough,  as  at  other  times,  for  the  expenses 
and  the  gifts  which  he  had  formerly  given  with  a  liberal 
hand,  in  which  he  had  surpassed  the  kings  who  had  been 
before  him.     And  he  was  exceedingly  perplexed  in  his  mind, 
and  determined  to  go  into  Persia  and  to  take  the  tributes  of 
the  countries  and  to  gather  much  money. 

So  he  left  Lysias,  an  honorable  man  and  one  of  the  royal  7,  Divi 
family,  in  charge  of  the  affairs  of  the  king  from  the  River  ' 

Euphrates  to  the  borders  of  Egypt  and  to  bring  up  his  son 
Antiochus,  until  he  returned.  And  he  delivered  to  him  the  '(^-'-^^ 
half  of  his  forces  and  the  elephants,  and  gave  him  charge 
of  all  the  things  that  he  wished  to  have  done  and  concerning 
those  who  dwelt  in  Judea  and  in  Jerusalem,  that  he  should 
send  a  force  against  them,  to  root  out  and  destroy  the  strength 
of  Israel  and  the  remnant  of  Jerusalem,  and  to  take  away 
their  memory  from  the  place,  and  that  he  should  make 
foreigners  dwell  in  all  their  territory  and  should  divide  their 
land  to  them  by  lot.    Then  the  king  took  the  remaining  half 

205 


sion  of 
the  mil- 
itary 
forres 


VICTORIES  THAT  GAVE  JEWS  RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY 

of  the  forces  and  set  out  from  Antioch  his  capital,  in  the  one 
hundred  and  forty-seventh  year,  and,  crossing  the  Euphrates, 
he  went  through  the  upper  countries. 

Now  Lysias  chose  Ptolemy  the  son  of  Dorymenes,  and 
Kicanor,  and  Gorgias,  influential  men  among  the  king's 
Friends,  and  with  them  sent  forty  thousand  footmen  and 
seven  thousand  horsemen  to  go  into  the  land  of  Judah  to 
destroy  it,  as  the  king  had  ordered.  And  they  set  out  with 
all  their  army  and  pitched  their  camp  near  Emmaus  in  the 
plain.  And  the  merchants  of  the  country  heard  the  rumors 
about  them,  and  taking  silver  and  gold  in  large  quantities, 
and  shackles,  they  came  into  the  camp  to  get  the  Israelites 
for  slaves.  There  were  added  to  them  the  forces  of  Syria 
and  of  the  Philistines. 
Atti-  Then  Judas  and  his  brothers  saw  that  evils  were  increas- 
ing and  that  the  forces  were  encamping  in  their  territory, 
and  when  they  learned  of  the  commands  which  the  king 
had  given  to  destroy  the  people  and  make  an  end  of  them, 
they  said  to  each  other. 

Let  us  raise  up  the  ruin  of  our  people 

And  let  us  fight  for  our  people  and  the  sanctuary; 

So  they  gathered  together  and  came  to  Mizpeh,  opposite 
Jerusalem;  for  in  Mizpeh  there  was  a  place  of  prayer  for 
Israel.  And  they  fasted  that  day,  and  put  sackcloth  and 
ashes  on  their  heads  and  tore  their  clothes,  and  spread  out 
the  book  of  the  law — one  of  those  in  which  the  heathen  had 
been  painting  images  of  their  idols.  And  they  brought  the 
priests'  garments  with  the  first-fruits,  and  the  tithes,  and 
they  cut  the  hair  of  the  Nazirites  who  had  accomplished 
their  days.  And  they  cried  aloud  toward  Heaven,  saying. 
What  shall  we  do  with  these  and  whither  shall  we  carry 
them  away?  For  thy  sanctuary  is  trodden  down  and  pro- 
faned, and  thy  priests  are  in  sorrow  and  humiliation.  And 
now  the  heathen  have  assembled  together  against  us  to 
destroy  us.  Thou  knowest  what  plans  they  are  making 
against  us.  How  shall  we  be  able  to  stand  before  them,  ex- 
cept thou  be  our  help?  And  they  sounded  with  the  trum- 
pets, and  cried  with  a  loud  voice. 

206 


VICTORIES  THAT  GAVE  JEWS  RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY 

And  after  this  Judas  appointed  leaders  of  the  people,   ip. 
commanders  over  thousands,  over  hundreds,  over  fifties,  I'^ii^l 
and  over  tens.     And  he  told  those  who  were  building  houses  [,'^'"ji,g® 
and  those  who  were  planting  vineyards  and  those  who  were  ("^°) 
afraid,  to  return,  each  to  his  own  house,  as  the  law  com- 
manded.    Then  the  army  removed  and  encamped  upon  the 
south  side  of  Emmaus.     And  Judas  said.  Gird  yourselves 
and  be  valiant  men;   and  be  ready  in  the  morning  to  fight 
with  these  heathen  who  are  assembled  together  against  us 
to  destroy  us  and  our  sanctuary.     For  it  is  better  for  us  to 
die  in  battle  than  to  see  the  misfortunes  of  our  nation  and 
of  the  sanctuary.     Nevertheless,  let  Heaven  do  whatever  be 
his  will. 

And  Gorgias  took  five  thousand  footmen,  and  a  thousand  ii.Gor- 
chosen  horsemen,  and  the  army  set  out  by  night,  that  it  ^tfie 
might  fall  upon  the  army  of  the  Jews  and  attack  them  sud-  J^'||?J'^ 
derdy.     And  the  men  of  the  citadel  were  his  guides.     But  (4'  «"J 
when  Judas  heard  of  it,  he  broke  camp  with  his  valiant  men, 
that  he  might  attack  the  king's  army  which  was  at  Emmaus, 
while  as  yet  the  forces  were  dispersed  from  the  camp.     And 
when  Gorgias  came  to  the  camp  of  Judas  by  night,  he  found 
no  one.     Then  he  looked  for  them  in  the  mountains,  think- 
ing that  the  men  were  fleeing  from  him. 

But  as  soon  as  it  was  day,  Judas  appeared  in  the  plain  with  12.  ^^ 
three  thousand  men;    only  they  had  neither  armor  nor  exho?-^ 
swords  as  they  wished.     When  now  they  saw  the  camp  of  [^^^'^^ 
the  heathen  strongly  fortified  and  cavalry  about  it  and  ex-  men 
perienced  warriors  there,  Judas  said  to  the  men  who  were  ^ 
with  him.  Fear  not  their  multitude  neither  be  afraid  of  their 
attack.     Remember  how  our  fathers  were  saved  in  the  Red 
Sea,  when  Pharaoh  pursued  them  with  a  host.     And  now 
let  us  cry  to  Heaven,  if  he  will  show  favor  to  us  and  will  re- 
member the  covenant  made  with  our  fathers  and  destroy 
this  army  before  our  face  to-day,  that  all  the  heathen  may 
know  that  there  is  one  who  redeemeth  and  saveth  Israel. 

Then  when  the  foreigners  lifted  up  their  eyes  and  saw 
them  coming  toward  them,  they  went  from  their  camp  to  .Vn,'i' 


13. 
Defeat 


pursuit 
'if  the 


battle.     And  those  who  were  with  Judas  sounded  their  trum    

pets  and  joined  battle;  and  the  heathen  were  defeated  and  oreoks 
fled  into  the  plain.    But  all  who  were  in  the  rear  fell  by  the 

207 


VICTORIES  THAT  GAVE  JEWS  RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY 

sword,  and  they  pursued  them  to  Gazara  and  to  the  plains 
of  Idumea  and  Azotus  and  Jamnia,  and  there  fell  of  them 
about  three  thousand  men. 

When  Judas  and  his  army  rettimed  from  pursuing  them, 
he  said  to  the  people,  Do  not  be  greedy  for  the  spoils,  since 
there  is  a  battle  before  us,  and  Gorgias  and  his  army  are 
near  us  in  the  mountain.  But  stand  now  against  our 
enemies  and  fight  them,  and  afterward  you  may  openly  take 
the  spoils.  While  Judas  was  still  speaking  there  appeared 
a  part  of  them,  looking  out  from  the  mountain ;  and  these 
saw  that  their  army  had  been  put  to  flight  and  that  the  Jews 
were  burning  their  camp,  for  the  smoke  that  was  seen 
showed  what  had  been  done.  And  when  they  perceived 
these  things,  they  were  thrown  into  a  panic,  and  seeing  the 
army  of  Judas  also  in  the  plain  ready  for  battle,  they  all  re- 
treated into  the  land  of  the  Philistines.  And  Judas  returned 
to  sack  the  camp,  and  they  took  much  gold  and  silver  and 
blue  and  sea-purple  and  great  riches.  Then  they  returned 
home  and  sang  a  song  of  thanksgiving  and  gave  praise  to 
Heaven,  because  he  is  good,  because  his  mercy  enduretb 
forever.  Thus  Israel  had  a  great  deliverance  that  day. 
15.  Dis-  But  the  foreigners,  as  many  as  had  escaped,  came  and 
agef"  told  Lysias  all  the  things  that  had  happened.  And  when  he 
ment  of  heard  it  he  was  astonished  and  discouraged,  because  neither 
(26.1?^  had  Israel  met  with  reverses  as  he  wished  nor  had  what  the 
king  commanded  been  realized. 

Now  in  the  next  year  [Lysias]  gathered  together  sixty  thou- 
sand picked  footmen  and  five  thousand  horsemen,  that  he 
might  subdue  [the  Jews].  When  they  came  to  Idumea  and 
encamped  at  Bethsura,  Judas  met  them  with  ten  thousand 
men.  As  he  saw  that  the  army  was  strong,  he  prayed  and 
said.  Blessed  art  thou,  0  Saviour  of  Israel,  who  didst  shatter 
the  attacking  power  of  the  mighty  man  by  the  hand  of  thy 
servant  David,  and  didst  deliver  the  army  of  the  heathen 
into  the  hands  of  Jonathan  the  son  of  Saul,  and  of  his  armor- 
bearer. 

Shut  up  this  army  in  the  hand  of  thy  people  Israel, 

And  let  them  be  ashamed  of  their  army  and  their  horsemen. 

Give  them  faintness  of  heart, 

208 


VICTORIES  THAT  GAVE  JEWS  RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY 

And  let  their  bold  courage  melt  away, 
And  let  them  tremble  at  their  destruction. 
Cast  them  down  by  the  sword  of  those  who  love  thee, 
So   that  all  may  know   thy  name  who  praise  thee  with 
thanksgiving. 

Then  they  joined  battle;  and  there  fell  of  the  army  of 
Lysias  about  five  thousand  men,  and  they  fell  on  the  spot 
before  them. 

But  when  Lysias  saw  that  his  army  was  retreating,  and  17- Ly- 
the  boldness  that  had  come  upon  those  who  were  with  Judas,  reueat 
and  how  they  were  ready  either  to  live  or  to  die  nobly,  he  ^°  p"^^' 
removed  to  Antioch  and  gathered  together  hired  soldiers,  forln- 
that  he  might  come  again  into  Judea  with  a  still  greater  attack 
force.  ("") 

Then  Judas  and  his  brothers  said.  Now  that  our  enemies  is. 
have  been  defeated,  let  us  go  up  to  cleanse  the  sanctuary  and  mJniai 
to  dedicate  it  again ;  so  they  went  up  to  Mount  Zion.     And  [n'^^'and 
all  the  army  was  gathered  together  and  went  up  to  Mount  rcstcj^- 
Zion.     And  when  they  saw  the  sanctuary  laid  desolate,  the  ofThe 
altar  profaned,  the  gates  burnt,  and  shrubs  growing  in  the  l^"^,"?'^ 
courts,  as  in  a  forest  or  as  on  one  of  the  mountains,  and  the 
priests'  chambers  pulled  down,  they  tore  their  garments  and 
made  great  lamentation,  and  putting  ashes  upon  their  heads, 
they  fell  prone  upon  the  ground.     Then  they  blew  a  signal 
on  the  trumpets  and  cried  to  Heaven.     And  Judas  appointed 
certain  men  to  fight  against  those  who  were  in  the  citadel, 
until  he  should  have  cleansed  the  sanctuary.     And  he  chose 
priests  who  were  unimpeachable  observers  of  the  law,  who 
cleansed  the  sanctuary  and  carried  out  the  polluted  stones 
to  an  unclean  place.     And  they  deliberated  as  to  what  they 
should  do  with  the  altar  of  burnt-offerings  which  had  been 
profaned.     They  finally  reached  this  wise  decision:   to  pull 
it  down  lest  it  should  be  a  reproach  to  them,  because  the 
heathen  had  defiled  it.     So  they  pulled  down  the  altar  and 
laid  the  stones  on  the  temple  mount  in  a  convenient  place, 
until  there  should  come  a  prophet  to  give  an  oracle  concern- 
ing them.     Then  they  took  whole  stones  as  the  law  required 
and  built  a  new  altar  after  the  design  of  the  former.     They 
also  rebuilt  the  sanctuary  and  the  inner  parts  of  the  temple 

209 


VICTORIES  THAT  GAVE  JEWS  RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY 

and  consecrated  the  courts.  They  also  made  the  holy  vessels 
new  and  brought  the  candlestick  and  the  altar  for  burnt- 
offerings  and  for  incense  and  the  table  into  the  temple.  And 
they  burned  incense  on  the  altar  and  lighted  the  lamps  that 
were  on  the  candlestick,  and  they  gave  light  in  the  temple. 
Then  they  set  loaves  upon  the  table  and  spread  out  the  veils. 
So  they  finished  all  the  work  they  had  imdertaken. 

19.  And  they  arose  early  in  the  morning  of  the  twenty-fifth 

tufi^n  ^^1  o^  the  ninth  month,  which  is  the  month  Chislev,  in  the 
of  tiie  one  hundred  and  forty-eighth  year  (165  B.C.)  and  offered 
d^ica-  sacrifice  according  to  the  law  upon  the  new  altar  of  bumt- 
(m"i)  offering  which  they  had  made.  About  the  same  time  and 
on  the  same  day,  in  which  the  heathen  had  profaned  it,  was 
it  dedicated  again  with  songs  and  harps  and  lutes  and  with 
cymbals.  And  all  the  people  prostrated  themselves  and 
worshipped  and  gave  praise  to  Heaven,  who  had  given  them 
good  success.  And  they  celebrated  the  dedication  of  the 
altar  eight  days,  and  offered  burnt-offerings  with  gladness 
and  sacrificed  a  sacrifice  of  deliverance  and  praise.  And 
they  decorated  the  front  of  the  temple  with  crowns  of  gold 
and  small  shields  and  rededicated  the  gates  and  the  priests' 
chambers  and  made  doors  for  them.  And  great  joy  reigned 
among  the  people,  because  the  reproach  of  the  heathen  had 
been  removed.  And  Judas  and  his  brothers  and  the  whole 
congregation  of  Israel  decreed  that  the  days  of  the  dedica- 
tion of  the  altar  should  be  kept  in  their  seasons  from  year 
to  year  for  the  period  of  eight  days,  from  the  twenty-fifth 
day  of  the  month  Chislev,  with  gladness  and  joy.  At  that 
time  also  they  fortified  Mount  Zion  with  high  walls  and 
strong  towers  all  round,  lest  by  any  chance  the  heathen 
should  come  and  tread  them  down,  as  they  had  done  before. 
And  he  stationed  there  a  force  to  keep  it,  and  they  fortified 
Bethsura,  that  the  people  might  have  a  stronghold  in  Idumea. 

I.  The  Character  of  Judas.  Judas  Maccabeus  was  a  man  of  un- 
questioned courage.  In  the  many  battles  which  he  fought  he  was 
always  found  at  the  forefront  in  the  most  desperate  engagement.  More 
than  that  he  was  able  to  arouse  courage  in  a  people  that  for  centuries 
had  learned  only  to  bow  unresistingly  before  their  conquerors.     All  the 

210 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  JUDAS 

e\'idence  found  in  the  two  books  of  Maccabees  indicates  that  he  was  in- 
spired by  the  noblest  patriotism.  The  motive  power  in  his  patriotism 
was  devotion  to  the  law  and  customs  of  his  race.  In  this  respect  he  was 
a  leader  supremely  acceptable  to  the  Hasideans  or  Pious,  who  rallied 
about  his  standard.  In  any  other  age  or  setting  his  devotion  would 
have  seemed  but  fanaticism.  The  situation,  however,  was  extremely 
critical.  Disloyalty  to  the  law  and  the  distinctive  rites  of  Judaism  was 
treason.  If  ever  in  the  world's  history  it  was  justifiable  to  meet  force 
by  force  and  to  unshield  the  sword  in  behalf  of  religion,  this  certainly 
was  the  occasion.  In  his  military  tactics  Judas  revealed  the  cunning 
that  characterizes  the  hunted.  He  developed  great  skill  in  choosing  a 
strategic  position  and  in  launching  his  followers  against  a  vulnerable 
point  in  the  enemy's  line.  In  this  respect  he  showed  himself  a  disciple 
of  David's  able  general  Joab.  They  were  the  same  tactics  that  Napoleon 
employed  so  effectively  in  later  days  and  on  larger  battle-fields.  Judas 
resembled  in  many  ways  Israel's  first  king,  Saul.  He  was  impetuous, 
patriotic,  intense,  and  energetic.  He  was  especially  skilled  in  leading 
a  sudden  attack.  His  task  also  was  strikingly  similar  to  that  of  Israel's 
first  king,  and  like  Saul  in  his  later  days  he  showed  the  same  inability 
to  organize  and  hold  his  followers  in  a  time  of  comparative  peace. 

II.  Obstacles  against  Which  Judas  Contended.  When  Judas  was 
called  to  champion  the  cause  of  the  Jews,  they  were  hated  by  the  rest  of 
the  world.  It  was  a  disorganized  band  of  fugitives  that  rallied  about 
him,  without  homes,  resources,  or  arms.  Opposed  to  him  were  the  large 
armies  of  a  powerful  empire.  The  Greek  mercenaries  that  fought  in 
the  Syrian  ranks  were  armed  with  coats  of  mail  and  the  best  weapons 
known  to  the  ancient  world.  They  were  also  thoroughly  trained  in  the 
art  of  war  and  under  the  direction  of  experienced  generals.  On  every 
battle-field  the  Syrians  outnumbered  the  Jews  almost  six  to  one.  Pitted 
against  Judas  and  his  followers  were  apostates  of  his  own  race,  who 
knew  the  land,  were  able  to  spy  out  the  movements  of  the  Jews,  and  were 
inspired  by  the  bitterest  hatred.  The  few  advantages  on  the  side  of 
Judas  were:  first,  his  followers  were  aroused  to  heroic  deeds  by  the  peril 
of  the  situation.  In  the  second  place  they  were  inspired  by  an  intense 
religious  zeal.  The  one  force  throughout  Semitic  history  that  has  bound 
together  tribes  and  nations  and  made  the  Semite  an  almost  invincible 
fighting  power  has  been  religion.  The  familiar  illustrations  are  the 
Mohammedan  conquests  that  swept  victoriously  across  the  Bosporus 
and  conquered  Constantinople,  also  across  northern  Africa,  and  surged 
into  southern  Europe  over  the  Straits  of  Gibraltar  and  threatened  for 

211 


VICTORIES  THAT  GAVE  JEWS  RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY 

a  time  completely  to  engulf  the  Western  civilization.  Familiar  modem 
illustrations  are  the  Mahdist  insurrections  that  have  from  time  to  time 
taxed  the  resources  of  the  English  in  northern  Africa.  In  the  third 
place  the  land  of  Judea,  with  its  narrow  western  passes  rapidly  ascend- 
ing to  the  heights  above,  enabled  Judas  to  choose  his  battle-field  at  a 
point  where  only  a  few  of  the  enemy  could  be  brought  into  action  and 
where  a  handful  of  valiant  men  could  keep  an  army  at  bay. 

III.  Defeat  of  Apollonius  and  Seron.  At  first  Judas  wisely  con- 
fined himself  to  guerilla  warfare.  This  enabled  him  in  time  to  clothe 
and  arm  his  followers  with  the  garments  and  weapons  taken  from  the 
enemy.  The  most  important  of  these  smaller  engagments  took  place 
north  of  Jerusalem.  As  Apollonius,  the  Syrian  governor  of  Samaria, 
was  advancing  into  Judea,  Judas  suddenly  fell  upon  the  Syrians  and 
slew  their  leader.  Henceforth  the  sword  of  the  Syi-ian  governor  was 
effectively  wielded  by  Judas  in  behalf  of  religious  liberty. 

News  of  the  victory  soon  brought  Seron,  the  governor  of  Coele-Syria, 
with  a  large  army.  He  advanced  from  the  coast  plain  by  the  most 
direct  road  to  Jerusalem  over  the  famous  pass  of  the  Bethhorons. 
Within  a  distance  of  two  miles  the  road  ascended  nearly  fifteen  hundred 
feet.  At  points  it  was  merely  a  steep,  rocky  pass,  so  that  an  invading 
army  was  forced  to  march  single  file  and  to  pull  themselves  up  over  the 
rocks.  Here  on  the  heights  that  looked  out  toward  his  home  at  Modein 
Judas,  appealing  to  the  faith  and  patriotism  of  his  men,  swept  down 
upon  the  enemy  and  won  his  first  great  victory. 

IV.  The  Battle  of  Emmaus.  The  first  great  Jewish  victory  was  a 
severe  blow  to  the  power  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes,  for  at  that  time  he 
was  confronted  by  a  depleted  treasury.  He  therefore  left  his  kingdom 
in  charge  of  Lysias,  one  of  his  nobles,  and  set  out  on  a  campaign  into 
Persia  from  which  he  never  returned.  Three  generals  with  a  large 
army  were  sent  by  Lysias  against  the  Jews.  So  confident  were  they  of 
a  Syrian  victory  that  a  horde  of  slave  merchants  accompanied  the  armj 
that  they  might  purchase  the  Jewish  captives.  This  time  the  Syrians 
avoided  the  difficult  pass  of  Bethhoron  and  chose  the  Wady  Ali,  along 
which  the  modern  carriage  road  winds  up  from  the  coast  to  Jerusalem. 
The  main  camp  was  pitched  at  Emmaus  at  the  southeastern  side  of  the 
Plain  of  Ajalon  under  the  Judean  hills.  Meantime  Judas  had  selected 
as  his  head-quarters  the  lofty  hill  of  Mizpah,  associated  by  earlier  tradi- 
tion with  Samuel  and  the  scene  of  the  short-lived  rule  of  Gedaliah.  It 
ipas  well  chosen,  for  it  commanded  a  view  of  the  territory  to  the  north, 
south,  and  west.    While  the  army  of  the  Syrians,  sent  by  night  to  sur- 

212 


THE  BATTLE  OF  EMMAUS 

prise  Judas,  were  marching  up  the  northern  valley,  the  Jewish  patriots 
were  led  westward  toward  the  plain  along  one  of  the  parallel  valleys  that 
penetrated  the  Judean  hills.  Having  appealed  to  the  patriotic  memories 
and  the  religious  zeal  of  his  followers,  Judas  led  them  in  a  sudden  early 
morning  attack  against  the  Syrians  encamped  near  Emmaus.  Soon  the 
Syrians  were  in  wild  flight  across  the  plain  to  the  Philistine  cities,  and 
Judas  and  his  followers  were  left  in  possession  of  the  camp  and  its  rich 
spoil.  Panic  also  seized  his  pursuers  when  they  saw  their  camp  in  pos- 
session of  the  enemy,  and  Judas  was  left  for  the  moment  undisputed 
master  of  the  land  of  his  fathers.  This  victory  in  the  year  166  B.C.  was 
in  many  ways  the  most  sweeping  and  significant  in  early  Maccabean 
history. 

V.  The  Battle  at  Bethsura.  The  next  year  Lysias  himself  gathered 
a  huge  army  of  sixty  thousand  infantry  and  five  thousand  cavalry  and 
led  them  against  the  Jews.  This  time  the  Syrians  advanced  through  the 
broad  valley  of  Elah  where  David  had  fought  against  the  Philistine 
giant.  Thence  they  followed  the  Wady  Sur,  turned  southward  and  then 
eastward,  penetrating  to  the  top  of  the  Judean  plateau  a  little  north  of 
Hebron.  Approaching  from  this  point  the  Syrians  were  protected  in 
their  rear  by  the  Idumeans,  the  descendants  of  the  Edomites.  They 
succeeded  in  reaching  the  point  where  the  road  from  the  west  joins  the 
central  highway  from  Hebron  to  Jerusalem.  There  on  a  sloping  hill 
crowned  with  the  border  town  of  Bethsura,  Judas  was  able  to  rally  ten 
thousand  followers  to  meet  the  huge  Syrian  army.  From  the  parallel 
account  in  H  Maccabees  it  is  clear  that  he  did  not  succeed  in  winning  a 
decisive  victory,  but  a  crisis  in  Antioch  suddenly  compelled  Lysias  to 
return,  leaving  the  Jews  in  possession  of  the  battle-field. 

VI.  Restoration  of  the  Temple  Service.  With  mingled  sadness 
and  rejoicing  Judas  proceeded  at  once  to  Jerusalem  and  with  his  fol- 
lowers took  up  the  task  of  restoring  the  desecrated  temple  and  its  service. 
The  citadel  of  Acra,  which  appears  to  have  been  situated  on  the  Hill 
of  Ophel  to  the  south  of  the  temple,  was  still  strongly  garrisoned  by  apos- 
tate Jews  and  Syrian  soldiers.  For  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  century,  until 
the  days  of  Simon,  it  continued  to  be  held  by  Syrian  forces,  and  remained 
a  constant  menace  to  the  peace  of  Jerusalem.  The  vivid  account  of  the 
purification  of  the  temple  reveals  the  intense  devotion  of  the  Jews  to  this 
ancient  sanctuary,  and  throws  clear  light  upon  the  nature  of  its  service. 
This  epoch-making  act  is  commemorated  even  to-day  by  the  Jews 
throughout  the  world  and  is  known  as  the  Feast  of  Lights.  It  is  a 
memorial  of  that  successful  struggle  for  religious  freedom  in  which  prin- 

213 


VICTORIES  THAT  GAVE  JEWS  RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY 

ciples  were  established  that  have  affected  the  thought  and  action  of  all 
succeeding  generations.  Through  all  their  many  vicissitudes  and  under 
their  many  Gentile  rulers,  with  few  exceptions,  the  Jews  have  enjoyed 
uninterruptedly  the  right  of  worshipping  in  accordance  with  the  dictates 
of  their  law  and  the  customs  of  their  fathers. 

VII.  The  New  Spirit  in  Judaism.  Henceforth  the  law  for  which 
their  fathers  had  poured  out  their  life-blood  and  for  which  the  Jews  had 
fought  so  valiantly  was  regarded  with  new  and  deeper  veneration  and  its 
commands  gained  a  new  authority.  Again  the  Jews  had  enjoyed  a 
taste  of  freedom  and  had  learned  that  by  united  and  courageous  action 
they  could  shake  off  the  hated  heathen  yoke.  This  new  warlike  note 
is  sounded  in  many  of  the  later  psalms  of  the  Psalter.  Chapters  9-14, 
appended  to  the  older  books  of  Zechariah,  apparently  come  from  this 
same  period  and  voice  the  thought  of  the  conquerors.  The  words  of 
the  ninth  chapter  express  their  joy  and  exultation: 

For  I  have  bent  Judah  to  me, 
As  a  bow  which  I  have  filled  with  Ephraim; 
I  will  urge  thy  sons  against  the  sons  of  Greece, 
And  I  will  make  thee  like  the  sword  of  a  hero. 
Then  Jehovah  shall  be  seen  above  them, 
And  his  shaft  shall  go  forth  like  lightning. 
Jehovah  shall  blow  a  blast  upon  a  trumpet, 
And  travel  on  the  whirlwinds  of  the  south. 
Jehovah  of  hosts  shall  defend  them; 
And  they  shall  devour  and  tread  down  the  slingstones, 
They  shall  drink  their  blood  like  wine. 
They  shall  be  filled  with  it  like  the  crevices  of  an  altar. 
And  Jehovah  their  God  shall  give  them  victory  in  tha|;  day. 
Like  sheep  he  shall  feed  them  in  his  land. 
Yea,  how  good  and  how  beautiful  shall  it  be! 
Corn  shall  make  the  young  men  flourish,  and  new  wine  the 
maidens. 

The  victories  of  Judas  in  all  probability  also  inspired  the  messianic 
hope  expressed  in  9*'^": 

Rejoice  greatly,  O  daughter  of  Zionl 
Shout  aloud,  O  daughter  of  Jerusalem! 
Behold  thy  king  will  come  to  thee; 

214 


they  were  very  angry  and  concluded  to  destroy  the  race  of 
Jacob  that  was  in  the  midst  of  them,  and  they  began  to  slay 


THE  NEW  SPIRIT  IN   JUDAISM 

Vindicated  and  victorious  is  he, 

Humble,  and  riding  upon  an  ass. 

Upon  the  foal  of  an  ass. 

He  shall  cut  off  chariots  from  Ephraim, 

And  horses  from  Jerusalem; 

The  battle-bow  shall  also  be  cut  off. 

And  he  shall  speak  to  the  nations; 

His  rule  shall  be  from  sea  to  sea. 

From  the  river  to  the  ends  of  the  earth. 


§  CXI.     THE  LONG  CONTEST  FOR  POLITICAL 
INDEPENDENCE 

Now  when  the  heathen  round  about  heard  that  the  altar  i- 
had  been  built  and  the  sanctuary  dedicated  as  it  was  formerly,  ter  of 

the 
Idu- 
nieans 
(I  Msc 

and  destroy  among  the  people.  Judas,  however,  fought  s's) 
against  the  people  of  Esau  in  Idumea  at  Akrabattine,  because 
they  besieged  Israel,  and  he  defeated  them  with  a  great 
slaughter  and  humbled  their  pride  and  took  their  spoils. 
He  remembered  the  wickedness  of  the  inhabitants  of  Baean, 
who  were  a  source  of  annoyance  and  of  danger,  lying  in 
ambush  for  them  along  the  roads.  And  they  were  shut  up 
by  him  in  the  towers,  and  he  besieged  them  and  destroyed 
them  utterly  and  burned  the  towers  of  the  place,  with  all 
who  were  in  them. 

Then  he  passed  over  to  the  Ammonites  and  found  a  strong  2.  pe 
force  and  many  people,  with  Timotheus  as  their  leader. 
And  he  fought  many  battles  with  them,  and  they  were  de- 
feated before  him,  and  he  conquered  them.     Then  when  he  F^) 
had  gained  possession  of  Jazer  and  its  villages,  he  returned 
again  into  Judea. 

Then  the  heathen  who  were  in  Gilead  gathered  together  3.  Re 
against  the  Israelites  who  were  on  the  borders  to  destroy 
them.     And  they  fled  to  the  stronghold  of  Dathema  and  sent 
letters  to  Judas  and  his  brothers,  saying.  The  heathen  who  and 


feat  of 
the 

Ammo- 
nites 


ports 
of  out- 
rases  in 
Gilead 


are  about  us  have  gathered  together  against  us  to  destroy  us, 
and  they  are  preparing  to  come  and  get  possession  of  the 

215 


LONG  CONTEST  FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

stronghold  to  which  we  have  fled  for  refuge,  and  Timotheus 
is  the  leader  of  their  forces.  Now  therefore  come  and  rescue 
us  from  their  power,  for  many  of  our  men  have  fallen ;  and 
all  our  countrymen  who  dwell  in  the  land  of  Tob,  have  been 
put  to  death,  and  they  have  carried  into  captivity  their  wives 
and  children  and  their  possessions.  And  they  destroyed 
there  about  a  thousand  men.  While  the  letters  were  being 
read,  there  came  other  messengers  from  Galilee  with  their 
garments  torn,  bringing  a  message  of  similar  import,  saying, 
That  there  were  gathered  together  against  them  men  of 
Ptolemais,  of  Tyre,  of  Sidon,  and  from  all  heathen  Galilee 
to  destroy  them  completely. 

Now  when  Judas  and  the  people  heard  these  things,  a 
great  assembly  came  together  to  consult  what  they  should 
do  for  their  kinsmen  who  were  in  distress  and  being  attacked 
by  the  heathen.  And  Judas  said  to  Sinion  his  brother. 
Choose  men,  and  go,  rescue  your  countrymen  who  are  in 
GaHlee,  but  Jonathan  my  brother  and  I  will  go  into  the  land 
of  Gilead.  And  he  left  Joseph  the  son  of  Zacharias  and 
Azarias,  as  leaders  of  the  people,  with  the  rest  of  the  army  in 
Judea,  in  order  to  guard  it.  And  he  gave  orders  to  them, 
saying.  Take  charge  of  the  heathen  until  we  return.  And  to 
Simon  were  assigned  three  thousand  men  to  go  to  Galilee 
and  to  Judas  eight  thousand  men  to  go  into  the  land  of 
Gilead. 

Then  Simon  went  into  Galilee  and  fought  many  battles 
with  the  heathen,  and  the  heathen  were  defeated  by  him. 
And  he  pursued  them  to  the  gate  of  Ptolemais.  And  there 
fell  of  the  heathen  about  three  thousand  men,  and  he  took 
the  spoils  from  them.  They  took  with  them  those  who  were 
in  Galilee  and  in  Arbatta,  with  their  wives  and  their  children 
and  all  that  they  had,  and  brought  them  into  Judea  with 
great  rejoicing. 

Then  Judas  gathered  all  the  Israelites  who  were  in  the 
land  of  Gilead,  from  the  least  to  the  greatest,  with  their 
wives  and  children  and  their  household  possessions,  a  very 
great  host,  that  they  might  go  into  the  land  of  Judah.  And 
they  went  up  to  Mount  Zion  with  gladness  and  joy  and  offered 
whole  burnt-offerings,  because  not  one  of  them  had  been 
slain,  but  they  had  returned  safe  and  sound. 

216 


LONG  CONTEST  FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

Then  Judas  and  his  brothers  went  out  and  fought  against  7. 
the  people  of  Esau  in  the  land  toward  the  south.     And  he  succesl- 
smote  Hebron  and  the  villages  belonging  to  it  and  pulled  ^^^^ 
down  its  citadel  and  burned  the  surrounding  towers.     Then  the 
he  set  out  to  go  into  the  land  of  the  Philistines ;  and  he  went  mcMs 
through  Marissa.     On  that  day  certain  priests,  desiring  to  |,^4j.g_ 
do  exploits  there,  were  slain  in  battle,  when  they  unwisely  tinja 
went  out  to  fight.     Then  Judas  turned  aside  to  Azotus,  to  the 
land  of  the  Philistines,  and  pulled  down  their  altars  and 
burned  the  carved  images  of  their  gods  and,  taking  the  spoil 
of  their  cities,  he  returned  to  the  land  of  Judah.     And  the 
hero  Judas  and  his  brothers  were  greatly  honored  by  all  Is- 
rael and  by  all  the  heathen  wherever  their  name  was  heard. 

Now  those  who  were  in  the  citadel  were  hindering  Israel  8.  ^ 
round  about  the  sanctuary  and  were  always  seeking  to  do  offhe 
them  harm  and  were  a  support  to  the  heathen.     But  Judas  l]^^'^^^^ 
determined  to  destroy  them  and  called  all  the  people  together  appeal 
to  besiege  them.     And  they  were  gathered  together  and  be-  apo"-^ 
sieged  them  in  the  hundred  and  fiftieth  year,  and  he  made  \'^^fl^ 
mounds  from  which  to  shoot  and  engines  of  war.     Then  Syrian 
some  of  those  who  were  shut  up  came  out  and  certain  apos-  (d'*  j') 
tate  IsraeHtes  joined  them.     And  they  went  to  the  king  and 
said,  When  will  you  finally  satisfy  justice  and  avenge  our 
brothers?     We  were  willing  to  serve  your  father  and  to  live 
as  he  enjoined,  and  to  obey  his  commands ;  but  because  of 
this  our  own  people  besieged  us  in  the  citadel  and  were  alien- 
ated from  us;   and  as  many  of  us  as  they  could  find,  they 
killed  and  despoiled  our  inheritances.     And  not  against  us 
only  have  they  stretched  out  their  hand,  but  also  against  all 
that  bordered  on  them.     And  now  they  are  to-day  encamped 
against  the  citadel  at  Jerusalem,  to  take  it,  and  they  have 
fortified  the  sanctuary  and  Bethsura.     And  if  you  do  not 
quickly  anticipate  them,  they  will  do  greater  things  than 
these,  and  you  will  not  be  able  to  check  them. 

When  the  king  had  heard  this,  he  was  angry,  and  gathered  9^Ad- 
together  all  his  Friends,  the  oflScers  of  his  army,  and  those  of^* 
who  commanded  the  cavalry.     There  came  to  him  also  from  f^^^'^"' 
other  kingdoms  and  from  isles  of  the  sea,  bands  of  hired  sol-  Syrian 
diers.     So  the  number  of  his  forces  was  a  hundred  thousand  p™o 
footmen  and  twenty  thousand  horsemen  and  thirty-two  ele- 

217 


LONG  CONTESl   FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

phants  trained  for  war.  Then  they  went  through  Idumea 
and  encamped  against  Bethsura  and  carried  on  the  siege  a 
long  time  and  made  engines  of  war.  The  besieged,  however, 
sallied  out  and  burned  them  and  fought  valiantly.  And 
Judas  departed  from  the  citadel  and  encamped  at  Beth- 
zacharias,  opposite  the  king's  camp.  Then  the  king  rose 
early  in  the  morning  and  had  his  army  set  out  at  full  speed 
along  the  road  to  Beth-zacharias  and  his  forces  prepared  for 
battle  and  the  trumpets  were  sounded.  And  they  showed 
the  elephants  the  blood  of  grapes  and  mulberries,  in  order  to 
excite  them  for  the  battle.  Then  they  distributed  the  beasts 
among  the  phalanxes  and  stationed  by  each  elephant  a  thou- 
sand men  armed  with  coats  of  mail  and  helmets,  with  brass 
on  their  heads;  and  to  each  beast  five  hundred  chosen 
horsemen  were  appointed.  These  were  already  there, 
wherever  the  beast  was,  and  wherever  the  beast  went,  they 
went  with  him  and  did  not  separate  themselves  from  him. 
And  upon  them  were  towers  of  wood,  strong,  covered,  one 
girded  upon  each  beast.  Upon  them  were  engines  and  two 
or  three  men,  who  fought  upon  them,  besides  the  Indian 
who  guided  the  elephant.  The  rest  of  the  horsemen  he 
stationed  on  both  sides  of  the  two  wings  of  the  army  to  in- 
spire terror  and  to  protect  the  phalanxes.  And  when  the 
sun  struck  the  golden  and  bronze  shields,  the  mountain 
shone  with  them  and  blazed  like  torches  of  fire.  And  a  part 
of  the  king's  army  was  spread  out  on  the  heights,  and  some 
on  the  low  ground,  and  they  moved  firmly  and  in  good  order. 
And  all  who  heard  the  noise  of  their  multitude,  and  the 
marching  of  the  great  numbers,  and  the  rattling  of  the  arms, 
trembled  because  the  army  was  very  great  and  strong. 

Then  Judas  and  his  army  approached  for  battle,  and  there 
fell  of  the  king's  army  six  hundred  men.  Now  when  Eleazar, 
who  was  called  Avaran,  saw  one  of  the  beasts  armed  with 
royal  breastplates,  which  was  higher  than  all  the  beasts, 
and  it  looked  as  though  the  king  was  upon  it,  he  gave  him- 
self to  save  his  people  and  to  gain  for  himself  an  everlasting 
fame;  and  he  ran  upon  him  courageously  in  the  midst  of 
the  phalanx  and  slew  on  the  right  hand  and  on  the  left,  and 
they  scattered  from  before  him  on  either  side.  Then  he 
crept  under  the  elephant,  thrust  him  from  beneath,  and  slew 

218 


LONG  CONTEST  FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

him.  And  the  elephant  fell  to  the  earth  upon  him,  and  he 
died  there.  But  when  they  saw  the  strength  of  the  king 
and  the  fierce  onset  of  the  armies,  they  turned  away  from 
them. 

But  those  who  were  in  the  king's  army  went  up  to  Jem-  ii.sur- 
salem  to  meet  them,  and  the  king  encamped  for  a  struggle  oF'^^'^ 
with  Judea  and  Mount  Zion.   And  he  made  peace  with  those  f^^l^' 
in  Bethsura ;  for  they  surrendered  the  city,  because  they  and  the 
had  no  food  there  to  endure  the  siege,  because  the  land  had  fuef  °^" 
a  sabbath.     So  the  king  took  Bethsura  and  stationed  a  gar-  jg^g^j^ 
rison  there  to  keep  it.   Then  he  encamped  against  the  sanct-  Jem- 
uary  for  a  long  time ;  and  he  set  there  mounds  from  which  (fs^i^ 
to  shoot  and  engines  of  war  and  instruments  for  casting 
stones  and  fire,  and  pieces  to  cast  darts  and  slings.     And 
they  also  erected  engines  against  those  of  the  besiegers  and 
fought  for  a  long  time.     But  since  there  was  no  food  in  the 
sanctuary,  because  it  was  the  seventh  year  and  those  who 
had  fled  for  safety  into  Judea  from  among  the  heathen  had 
eaten  up  what  remained  of  the  store  of  provisions,  there 
were  but  a  few  left  in  the  sanctuary,  because  the  famine  be- 
came so  severe  upon  them,  and  they  scattered,  each  man  to 
his  own  home. 

Now  Lysias  heard  that  Philip,  whom  Antiochus  the  king,  12. 
had  appointed  during  his  lifetime  to  bring  up  his  son  Anti-  cat^s' 
ochus  that  he  might  be  king,  had  returned  from  Persia  and  ^^^^' 
Media  and  with  him  the  forces  that  went  with  the  king,  and  and  the 
that  he  was  trying  to  get  control  of  the  government,  he  glaran- 
hastily  decided  to  depart.     And  he  said  to  the  king,  and  to  l^^^° 
the  oflicers  of  the  army  and  to  the  men.  We  are  growing  Jews 
weaker  every  day,  our  supplies  are  scanty,  and  the  place  ^'^  '^ 
which  we  are  besieging  is  strong,  and  the  welfare  of  the  king- 
dom depends  upon  us;   now  therefore  let  us  give  the  right 
hand  to  these  men  and  make  peace  with  them  and  with  all 
their  nation,  and  covenant  with  them  that  they  may  live 
according  to  their  own  customs  as  formerly ;  for  because  of 
their  laws,  which  we  abolished,  they  were  angered  and  did 
all  these  things.     This  counsel  pleased  the  king  and  the 
princes,  and  he  sent  to  them  to  make  peace.     They  accepted 
it,  and  when  the  king  and  the  princes  took  oath  to  them, 
they  came  out  of  the  stronghold.     But  when  the  king  en- 

219 


LONG  CONTEST  FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

tered  Mount  Zion  and  saw  the  strength  of  the  place,  he  broke 
the  oath  which  he  had  sworn  and  gave  orders  to  pull  down 
the  wall  round  about.  Then  he  set  out  in  haste  and  re- 
turned to  Antioch  and  found  Philip  master  of  the  city ;  and 
he  fought  against  him  and  took  the  city  by  force. 

13.  In  the  one  hundred  and  fiftieth  year,  Demetrius  the  son 
^onTf  of  Seleucus  escaped  from  Rome  and  went  up  with  a  few  men 
Deme-  ^q  ^  city  by  the  sea,  and  there  proclaimed  himself  king. 
(7'"^)      And  when  he  entered  the  palace  of  his  fathers,  the  army 

seized  Antiochus  and  Lysias,  to  bring  them  to  him.  But 
when  the  fact  was  made  known  to  him,  he  said.  Do  not  show 
me  their  faces.  And  the  army  slew  them.  So  Demetrius 
sat  upon  the  throne  of  his  kingdom. 

14.  De-  And  there  came  to  him  all  the  lawless  and  the  apostate 
cfii^  men  of  Israel,  with  Alcimus,  their  leader,  desiring  to  be  high 
and  priest.  And  they  accused  the  people  before  the  king,  saying, 
of  Aici-  Judas  and  his  brothers  have  destroyed  all  your  friends,  and 
(?",^)       have  scattered  us  from  our  own  land.     Now  therefore  send 

a  man  whom  you  trust,  and  let  him  go  and  see  all  the  havoc 
which  he  has  made  of  us  and  of  the  king's  country,  and  how 
he  has  punished  them  and  all  who  helped  them.  So  the  king 
chose  Bacchides,  one  of  the  king's  Friends,  who  was  ruler  in 
the  province  beyond  the  River  Euphrates,  and  was  a  great 
man  in  the  kingdom,  and  faithful  to  the  king.  He  sent  him 
and  also  that  godless  Alcimus,  and  confirmed  him  in  the 
high  priesthood,  and  commanded  him  to  take  vengeance 
upon  the  Israelites.  So  they  set  out  and  came  with  a  great 
army  into  the  land  of  Judah,  and  he  sent  messengers  to 
Judas  and  his  brothers  with  words  of  peace,  deceitfully.  But 
they  paid  no  attention  to  their  words  for  they  saw  that  these 
men  had  come  with  a  great  army.  Then  there  were  gathered 
together  to  Alcimus  and  Bacchides  a  company  of  scribes,  to 
seek  for  justice.  And  the  Hasideans  were  the  first  among 
the  Israelites  who  sought  peace  with  them;  for  they  said, 
One  who  is  a  descendant  of  Aaron  has  come  with  the  forces 
and  he  will  do  us  no  wrong.  And  he  spoke  words  of  peace 
to  them,  and  took  oath  to  them,  saying.  We  will  seek  the 
hurt  neither  of  you  nor  of  your  friends.  And  they  put  con- 
fidence in  him.  But  he  seized  sixty  of  them,  and  slew  them 
in  one  day,  as  it  is  written  in  the  Scriptures, 

220 


LONG  CONTEST  FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

The  flesh  of  thy  saints  .  .  . 

And  their  blood  they  poured  out  round  about  Jerusalem ; 

And  there  was  no  man  to  bury  them. 

And  the  fear  and  hatred  of  them  fell  upon  all  the  people,  for 
they  said,  There  is  neither  truth  nor  justice  in  them;  for 
they  have  broken  the  covenant  and  the  oaths  which  they 
made. 

And  when  Judas  saw  that  Alcimus  and  his  company  had  15. 
done  more  mischief  among  the  Israelites  than  the  heathen,  Joh^'^ 
he  went  out  into  the  whole  territory  of  Judea  round  about  and^j^ta 
and  took  vengeance  on  the  men  who  had  deserted  from  him,  p  ») 
and  they  were  restrained  from  going  forth  into  the  country. 
But  when  Alcimus  saw  that  Judas  and  his  company  were 
growing  strong  and  knew  that  he  was  not  able  to  withstand 
them,  he  returned  to  the  king  and  brought  evil  charges 
against  them.   So  the  king  sent  Nicanor,  one  of  his  honored 
princes,  a  man  who  hated  Israel  and  was  their  enemy,  and 
commanded  him  to  destroy  the  people. 

When  Nicanor  came  to  Jerusalem  with  a  great  army,  he  16.  Ni- 
sent  to  Judas  and  his  brother  a  message  of  peaceful  words  tfea°h- 
with  deceitful  intent,  saying.  Let  there  be  no  battle  between  efJ^^ 
us.     I  will  come  with  a  few  men,  that  I  may  see  your  faces 
in  peace.     And  he  came  to  Judas,  and  they  saluted  one 
another  peaceably.     But  the  enemies  were  prepared  to  take 
away  Judas,  by  violence.     And  when  the  fact  was  clear  to 
Judas,  that  he  had  come  to  him  with  deceit,  he  was  very 
much  afraid  of  him  and  would  see  his  face  no  more.     So 
Nicanor  knew  that  his  plan  was  discovered,  and  he  went  out 
to  meet  Judas  in  battle  near  Capharsalama.     And  there  fell 
of  those  with  Nicanor  about  five  hundred  men.     Then  they 
fled  into  the  city  of  David. 

Now  after  these  things  Nicanor  went  to  Zion.    And  when  17.  His 
some  of  the  priests  came  out  of  the  sanctuary,  and  some  of  °asla 
the  elders  of  the  people,  to  salute  him  peaceably  and  to  show  (''■^'> 
him  the  whole  burnt-offering  that  was  being  offered  for  the 
king,  he  mocked  them,  and  laughed  at  them,  and  abused 
them,  and  talked  insolently.     He  also  swore  in  a  rage,  say- 
ing. Unless  Judas  and  his  army  are  now  delivered  into  my 
bands,  if  I  come  again  in  peace,  I  will  bum  up  this  temple. 

221 


over 

Nica- 

nor 

(39-46) 


LONG  CONTEST  FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

He  went  out  in  a  great  rage.  Then  the  priests  went  in  and 
stood  before  the  altar  and  the  temple ;  and  they  wept  and  said, 
Thou  didst  choose  this  temple  to  be  called  by  thy  name,  to  be 
a  house  of  prayer  and  supplication  for  thy  people.  Take  ven- 
geance on  this  man  and  his  army,  and  let  him  fall  by  the 
sword.  Remember  their  blasphemies,  and  let  them  live  no 
longer. 

18.  ^  And  Nicanor  set  forth  from  Jerusalem  and  encamped  in 
prai^r^  Bethhoron,  and  there  the  army  of  Syria  met  him.  But 
"^r^t  Judas  encamped  in  Adasa  with  three  thousand  men.  Then 
victory   Judas  prayed  and  said.  When  they  who  came  from  the  king 

blasphemed,  thine  angel  went  out  and  smote  among  them 
an  hundred  and  sixty-five  thousand.  Even  so  destroy  thou 
this  army  before  us  to-day,  and  let  all  the  rest  know  that  he 
hath  spoken  wickedly  against  thy  sanctuary,  and  judge  thou 
him  according  to  his  wickedness.  So  on  the  thirteenth  day 
of  the  month  Adar  the  armies  joined  battle;  and  Nicanor's 
army  was  defeated,  and  he  himself  was  the  first  to  fall  in  the 
battle.  And  when  his  army  saw  that  Nicanor  had  fallen, 
they  threw  away  their  weapons  and  fled.  And  [the  Jews] 
pursued  them  a  day's  journey  from  Adasa  as  far  as  Gazara 
when  they  sounded  the  trumpet-signal  for  the  return.  Then 
they  came  out  from  all  the  villages  of  Judea  on  every  hand 
and  outflanked  them ;  and  the  one  turned  them  back  on  the 
other  army,  and  they  all  fell  by  the  sword,  so  that  none  of 
them  was  left. 

19.  And  they  took  the  spoils  and  the  booty,  and  they  struck 
falfo^  off  Nicanor's  head  and  his  right  hand,  which  he  had  stretched 
over  out  SO  haughtily,  and  brought  them  and  hung  them  up  in 
delth  the  citadel  of  Jerusalem.  And  the  people  were  very  glad. 
cin^r  They  also  enacted  an  ordinance  for  the  celebration  of  this 
("-50)      (Jay  year  by  year,  the  thirteenth  day  of  Adar.     So  the  land 

of  Judah  had  rest  for  a  brief  period. 

When  Demetrius  heard  that  Nicanor  had  fallen  with  his 
forces  in  battle,  he  sent  Bacchides  and  Alcimus  again  into 
army"  the  land  of  Judah  a  second  time,  and  the  southern  wing  of 
dwer!"^  his  army  with  them.  And  they  went  by  that  way  that  leads 
judaf  *°  Gilgal,  and  encamped  against  Masaloth,  which  is  in  Arbela, 
by  the  and  gained  possession  of  it  and  destroyed  many  people. 
(liT)      And  the  first  month  of  the  hundred  and  fifty-second  year 

222 


20.  .Ad- 
vance 
of  the 
Syrian 


deter- 
mina- 
tion to 
fight 


LONG  CONTEST  FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

they  encamped  against  Jerusalem.  Then  they  set  out  and 
went  to  Berea  with  twenty  thousand  footmen  and  two  thou- 
sand horsemen.  And  Judas  was  encamped  at  Elasa,  and 
three  thousand  chosen  men  with  him.  And  when  they  saw 
the  multitude  of  the  forces,  that  they  were  many,  they  were 
greatly  frightened,  and  many  slipped  away  from  the  army, 
so  that  there  were  left  of  them  not  more  than  eight  hundred 
men. 

And  when  Judas  saw  that  his  army  had  dispersed,  he  was  21.  His 
deeply  troubled,  because  he  had  no  time  to  gather  them  to- 
gether, and  he  grew  discouraged.  And  he  said  to  those  who 
were  left.  Let  us  arise  and  go  up  against  our  adversaries,  if  v''^ 
perhaps  we  may  be  able  to  fight  with  them.  And  they  would 
have  dissuaded  him,  saying.  We  shall  not  be  able ;  but  let  us 
rather  save  our  lives  now;  let  us  return  again  with  our 
fellow-countrymen  and  fight  against  them,  for  we  are  few. 
But  Judas  said,  Far  be  it  from  me  so  to  do,  that  I  should  flee 
from  them.  For  if  our  time  has  come,  let  us  die  manfully 
for  the  sake  of  our  fellow-countrymen  and  not  leave  a  cause 
of  reproach  against  our  honor. 

Then  the  army  set  out  from  the  camp  and  drew  up  to  meet  22.  The 
them ;  and  the  cavalry  drew  up  into  two  companies,  and  the  a^ j  ^® 
slingers  and  the  archers  went  before  the  army,  with  all  the  death 
strong,  foremost  warriors.     But  Bacchides  was  in  the  rear  judaa 
wing.     Then  the  phalanx  advanced  on  both  sides,  and  they 
sounded  their  trumpets.     And  Judas's  men  also  sounded 
their  trumpets,  and  the  earth  shook  with  the  shout  of  the 
armies ;  so  the  battle  was  begun  and  continued  from  morn- 
ing until  evening.     And  when  Judas  saw  that  Bacchides  and 
the  strength  of  his  army  were  on  the  right  side,  all  who  were 
brave  in  heart  went  with  him,  and  the  right  v/ing  was  de- 
feated by  them,  and  he  pursued  them  to  the  slope  of  the 
mountains.     And  they  who  were  on  the  left  wing,  when 
they  saw  that  the   right  wing  was  defeated,  turned  and 
followed   upon  the  footsteps  of  Judas  and  of   those  who 
were  with  him.     And  the  battle   grew  fierce,   and  many 
on  both  sides  fell  mortally  wounded.     Then  Judas  fell  and 
the  rest  fled.  I^^^^^ 


(11-18) 


And  Jonathan  and  Simon  took  Judas  their  brother  and  of 


buried  him  in  the  sepulchre  of  his  fathers  at  Modein.     And 

223 


Juda.f 

(19,  2U^ 


LONG  COxNTEST  FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

they  bewailed  him,  and  all  Israel  made  great  lamentation 
for  him  and  mourned  many  days,  and  said. 

How  is  the  hero  fallen. 
The  saviour  of  Israel! 

24.  His  And  the  rest  of  the  valiant  acts  of  Judas,  and  his  wars  and 
corded  the  valiant  deeds  which  he  did,  and  his  greatness — they  have 
p^'^     not  been  recorded,  for  they  were  very  many. 

Now  after  the  death  of  Judas,  the  apostates  showed  them- 

Peree-     selves  iu  all  the  territory  of  Israel,  and  all  who  practised  in- 

of^he     justice  flourished.     About  the  same  time  there  was  a  very 

follow-    severe  famine,  and  the  whole  people  sided  with  them.     Then 

judM     Bacchides  selected  the  godless  men  and  made  them  rulers  of 

^^'"^      the  country.     And  they  conducted  a  thorough  search  for 

the  friends  of  Judas  and  brought  them  to  Bacchides,  and  he 

took  vengeance  on  them  and  tortured  them  cruelly.     Then 

great  tribulation  came  upon  Israel,  such  as  had  not  been  since 

the  time  that  prophets  had  ceased  to  appear  among  them. 

26.  Thereupon  all  the  friends  of  Judas  assembled  and  said  to 
of^jon-  Jonathan,  Since  your  brother  Judas  has  died,  we  have  no 
athan  one  like  him  to  go  out  against  our  enemies  and  Bacchides 
leader  and  agaiust  those  of  our  own  kin  who  hate  us.  Now  there- 
P-^j      fore  we  have  chosen  you  this  day  to  be  our  prince  and  leader 

in  his  place  that  you  may  fight  our  battles.  So  Jonathan 
assumed  the  leadership  at  that  time  and  took  the  place  of 
his  brother  Judas. 

27.  Au-  Now  in  the  one  hundred  and  sixtieth  year,  Alexander  the 
con"'^  son  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes  went  up  and  took  possession  of 
u^pon'^  Ptolemais,  and  they  received  him,  and  he  reigned  there. 
jona-  When  King  Demetrius  heard  of  it,  he  gathered  very  large 
by^De-  forces  and  went  out  to  meet  him  in  battle.  Demetrius  also 
(^Q^5"^  sent  letters  to  Jonathan  with  words  of  peace,  so  as  to  honor 

him  greatly.  For  he  said.  Let  us  get  the  start  in  making 
peace  with  them  before  he  makes  a  compact  with  Alexander 
against  us.  For  he  will  remember  all  the  wrongs  that  we 
have  done  to  him,  and  to  his  brothers  and  his  nation.  And 
he  gave  him  authority  to  collect  forces  and  to  provide  arms 
and  to  be  his  ally.  Also  he  commanded  that  they  should 
deliver  up  to  him  the  hostages  who  were  in  the  citadel. 

224 


LONG  CONTEST  FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

Then  Jonathan  came  to  Jerusalem,  and  read  the  letters  in  2«.Re«- 
the  hearing  of  all  the  people,  and  of  those  who  were  in  the  tfJn  of 
citadel.     And  they  were  greatly  afraid  when  they  heard  that  ^o**^- 
the  king  had  given  him  authority  to  collect  an  army.     And  and  the 
the  garrison  delivered  up  the  hostages  to  Jonathan,  and  he  [ng^o'l'^' 
restored  them  to  their  parents.     And  Jonathan  took  up  his  J^'u- 
residence  in  Jerusalem  and  began  to  rebuild  and  renew  the  C'T 
city.     And  he  commanded  those  who  did  the  work  to  build 
the  walls  and  Mount  Zion  round  about  with  square  stones 
for  defence ;  and  they  did  so.     Then  the  foreigners,  who  were 
in  the  strongholds  which  Bacchides  had  built,  fled,  and  each 
man  left  his  place  and  went  into  his  own  land.     Only  some 
of  those  who  had  forsaken  the  law  and  the  commandments 
were  left  at  Bethsura,  because  it  was  an  asylum  for  them. 

And  when  King  Alexander  heard  all  the  promises  which  29 
Demetrius  had  made  to  Jonathan  and  had  been  told  of  the 
battles  which  he  and  his  brothers  had  fought  and  the  valiant  ^p: 


Jona- 
than's 


point- 
men  t 


deeds  that  they  had. done  and  of  the  hardships  which  they 
had  endured,  he  said.  Shall  we  find  such  another  man?  pri^f^ 
Now  therefore  let  us  make  him  our  friend  and  ally.     So  he  ^lex- 
wrote  letters  and  sent  them  to  him  with  contents  like  these :  ander 

King  Alexander  to  his  brother  Jonathan,  greeting:  We  ^""-1?) 
have  heard  of  you  that  you  are  a  valiant  man  and  fit  to  be 
our  friend.  And  now  we  have  appointed  you  to-day  to  be 
high  priest  of  your  nation  and  to  be  called  the  king's  Friend 
(and  he  sent  to  him  a  purple  robe  and  a  crown  of  gold),  and 
to  take  our  part  and  to  remain  on  friendly  terms  with  us. 

And  Jonathan  put  on  the  holy  garments  in  the  seventh  so.  His 
month  of  the  hundred  and  sixtieth  year  at  the  feast  of  taber- 
nacles, and  he  gathered  together  forces,  and  provided  arms 
in  abundance.  honors 


as- 
sump- 
tion of 
his 


Now  in  the  one  hundred  and  sixty-fifth  year,  Demetrius 


(21) 


Apollo- 

nius's 

rhal- 


son  of  Demetrius,  came  from  Crete  into  the  land  of  his  3i^ 
fathers.  Then  King  Alexander  heard  of  it,  and  he  was  ex- 
ceedingly troubled  and  returned  to  Antioch.  And  Demetrius  lengl  to 
appointed  Apollonius,  who  was  over  Coele-Syria,  and  he  col-  f^'^^- 
lected  a  great  army  and  encamped  in  Jamnia,  and  sent  to  ("-"') 
Jonathan  the  high  priest  this  message: 

You  alone  are  hostile  to  us,  and  I  have  become  a  laughing- 
stock and  butt  of  ridicule  on  account  of  you.    Now  why  do 

225    - 


feat  of 
ApoUo- 
nius 


Confir- 
mation 
of  Jon- 
athan's 


LONG  CONTEST  FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

you  flaunt  your  power  against  us  in  the  mountains?  If, 
indeed,  you  trust  your  forces,  come  down  to  us  in  the  plain, 
and  there  let  us  try  the  matter  together,  because  with  me  is 
the  power  of  the  cities. 

32.  The       Now  wheu  Jonathan  heard  the  words  of  ApoUonius,  he 

and  de-  was  Stirred  to  anger,  and  he  chose  ten  thousand  men  and 
went  forth  from  Jerusalem,  and  Simon  his  brother  met  him 
to  help  him.  And  he  encamped  against  Joppa.  The  people 
of  the  city,  however,  shut  him  out,  because  ApoUonius  had 
a  garrison  in  Joppa.  So  they  fought  against  it.  Then  the 
people  of  the  city  were  afraid  and  opened  to  him,  and  Jon- 
athan became  master  of  Joppa. 

33.^  At  that  time  Jonathan  gathered  together  the  people  of 

Judea  to  take  the  citadel  that  was  at  Jerusalem,  and  he 
erected  many  engines  of  war  against  it.     Some,  however, 

au'thor-   who  hated  their  own  nation,  apostates,  went  to  the  king, 

(n2o-27)  and  reported  to  him  that  Jonathan  was  besieging  the  citadel. 
And  when  he  heard  it,  he  was  angry,  and  immediately  after 
he  heard  of  it  he  set  out  and  came  to  Ptolemais,  and  wrote 
to  Jonathan  that  he  should  not  besiege  it,  and  that  he  should 
meet  him  and  confer  with  him  at  Ptolemais  with  all  speed. 
But  when  Jonathan  heard  this,  he  gave  orders  to  proceed 
with  the  siege,  while  he  chose  certain  of  the  elders  of  Israel 
and  of  the  priests,  and  putting  himself  in  peril,  and  taking 
silver  and  gold  and  garments,  and  various  presents  besides, 
he  went  to  the  king  at  Ptolemais.  And  he  was  favorably 
received;  and  although  some  apostates  of  the  nation  made 
complaints  against  him,  the  king  treated  him  just  as  his 
predecessors  had  done  and  exalted  him  in  the  presence  of  all 
his  Friends,  both  confirming  to  him  the  high  priesthood,  and 
all  the  other  honors  that  he  had  before,  and  giving  him  pre- 
eminence among  his  Chief  Friends. 

34._^  And  Jonathan  requested  the  king  to  make  Judea  free 

from  tribute,  together  with  the  three  districts  of  Samaria, 
and  he  promised  him  three  hundred  talents.     And  the  king 

(". ")  consented  and  wrote  letters  to  Jonathan  concerning  all  these 
things. 

I.  The  Political  Situation.    The  position  of  the  Jewish  patriots  was 
both  perilous  and  tragic.    A  ring  of  hostile  peoples  pressed  them  closely 

-      226 


Deme- 

trius's 
conces 
sions 


THE  POLITICAL  SITUATION 

on  every  side.  The  Jews  were  the  victinas  of  centuries  of  wrong  and 
hatred.  Those  residing  in  the  neighboring  lands  also  suffered  from 
this  widespread  and  bitter  hostility.  Among  all  the  peoples  of  south- 
western Asia  they  had  no  allies  except  the  Nabateans,  an  Arabian  people 
that  had  driven  the  Edomites  from  their  home  on  Mount  Seir.  The 
only  bond  that  bound  them  to  this  ambitious  heathen  race  was  the  com- 
mon hatred  of  the  Syrians.  It  was  natural,  therefore,  that  Judas  a  little 
later  should  send  an  embassy  with  the  object  of  securing  the  moral  sup- 
port, if  not  the  direct  intervention,  of  the  distant  Roman  power  whose 
influence  was  beginning  to  be  felt  throughout  all  the  -Mediterranean 
coast  lands.  For  the  present,  however,  Judas  was  dependent  simply 
upon  the  sword  for  defence.  He  also  had  no  time  for  permanent  con- 
quest, for  he  must  prepare  himself  for  the  heavier  blow  that  the  court 
of  Antioch  was  preparing  to  deliver.  All  that  he  could  do,  therefore, 
was  to  make  sudden  attacks  upon  his  foes  on  every  side  and  rescue  the 
persecuted  Jews  by  bringing  them  back  with  him  to  Judea. 

II.  The  Jewish  Attitude  toward  the  Heathen  Reflected  in  the 
Book  of  Esther.  In  these  perilous  circumstances  it  is  not  strange  that 
the  Jews  gravitated  far  from  the  position  of  broad  tolerance  advocated 
by  the  II  Isaiah  and  the  authors  of  the  prophecy  of  IMalachi  and  in  the 
stories  of  Ruth  and  Jonah.  In  the  stress  of  conflict  they  completely 
lost  sight  of  their  mission  as  Jehovah's  witnesses  to  all  the  world.  The 
destruction  of  the  heathen  seemed  to  them  absolutely  necessary  if  Jeho- 
vah's justice  was  to  be  vindicated.  The  spirit  of  this  warlike,  blood- 
thirsty age  is  most  clearly  formulated  in  the  book  of  Esther.  The  pres- 
ence of  Aramaic  and  Persian  words  testify  to  its  late  date.  It  is  closely 
allied  to  the  midrashim  or  didactic  stories  that  were  a  characteristic 
literary  product  of  later  Judaism.  Like  the  stories  of  Daniel,  the  book 
of  Esther  contains  many  historical  inconsistencies.  For  example,  ]\Ior- 
decai,  carried  as  a  captive  to  Babylon  in  597  B.C.,  is  made  Xerxes's  prime- 
minister  in  474  B.C.  Its  pictures  of  Persian  customs  are  also  character- 
istic of  popular  tradition  rather  than  of  contemporary  history.  Its  basis 
is  apparently  an  old  Babylonian  tradition  of  a  great  victory  of  the  Baby- 
lonians over  their  ancient  foes,  the  Elamites.  Mordecai  is  a  modificaton 
of  the  name  of  the  Babylonian  god  Marduk.  Estra,  which  appears  in  the 
Hebrew  Esther,  was  the  late  Babylonian  form  of  the  name  of  the  Semitic 
goddess  Ishtar.  Vashti  and  Hamman,  the  biblical  Haman,  were  names 
of  Elamite  deities.  Like  the  story  of  creation,  this  tale  has  been  hebraized 
and  adapted  to  the  story-teller's  purpose.  His  aim  is  evidently  to  trace 
the  origin  of  the  late  Jewish  feast  of  Purim.     It  is  probable  that  this  feast 

227 


LONG  CONTEST  FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

was  an  adaptation  of  the  Babylonian  New- Year's  feast  which  commem- 
orated the  ancient  victory.  The  story  in  its  present  form  is  strongly  Jew- 
ish. It  exalts  loyalty  to  the  race,  but  its  morality  is  far  removed  from 
that  of  Amos  and  Isaiah.  Its  exultation  over  the  slaughter  of  thou- 
sands of  the  heathen  is  displeasing  even  in  a  romance,  although  it  can 
easily  be  understood  in  the  light  of  the  Maccabean  age  in  which  it 
was  written. 

III.  Campaigns  against  the  Neighboring  Peoples.  The  first 
book  of  Maccabees  records  in  detail  the  repeated  blows  that  Judas 
struck  against  his  heathen  foes.  At  Akrabattine,  probably  identical 
with  the  Scorpion  Pass  at  the  southwestern  end  of  the  Dead  Sea,  he 
fought  and  won  a  signal  victory  over  his  hereditary  foes,  the  Idumeans. 
His  chief  enemy  on  the  east  was  Timotheus,  the  leader  of  the  Ammon- 
ites against  whom  Judas  was  successful  in  the  preliminary  skirmishes. 
Angered  by  these  defeats,  the  heathen  east  of  the  Jordan  attacked  the 
resident  Jews,  who  fled  to  one  of  the  towns,  where  they  were  besieged. 
Judas,  assembling  six  thousand  of  his  picked  warriors,  made  a  rapid 
march  of  three  days  out  into  the  wilderness.  He  apparently  carried 
few  supplies,  but  depended  rather  upon  the  spoil  of  the  captured  towns 
for  support.  Bosra,  far  out  on  the  borders  of  the  desert,  was  seized  and 
looted.  Thence  returning  westward,  he  rescued  the  Jews  from  the  town 
of  Damethah,  or,  as  it  appears  in  the  Syriac,  Rametha.  This  is  probably 
identical  with  the  modern  town  of  Remtheh  a  little  south  of  the  Yarmuk 
on  the  great  pilgrim  highway  from  Damascus  to  Mecca.  After  making 
a  detour  to  the  south  he  crossed  the  Yarmulc  and  captured  a  series  of 
towns  lying  to  the  north  and  northeast  of  this  river.  Returning  he  ap- 
parently met  his  Ammonite  foe,  who  had  succeeded  in  rallying  an  army, 
at  the  point  where  the  pilgrim  highway  crosses  the  headwaters  of  the 
Yarmuk.  Here  Judas  won  a  sweeping  victory.  Then  collecting  the 
many  Jews  of  the  dispersion  who  had  settled  near  these  upper  waters  of 
the  Yarmuk,  he  returned  victoriously  to  Jerusalem.  His  brother  Simon, 
who  had  been  despatched  on  a  similar  mission  to  Galilee,  likewise  came 
back  bringing  many  fellow-Jews  and  laden  with  spoils. 

Anticipating  a  renewal  of  the  Syrian  attack,  Judas  next  made  a  rapid 
campaign  into  the  territory  of  the  Idumeans,  capturing  the  old  Hebrew 
capital  of  Hebron  and  carrying  his  victories  as  far  as  Ashdod  on  the 
western  borders  of  the  Philistine  plain.  Within  a  few  months  he  had 
overrun  and  partially  conquered  a  territory  larger  than  the  kingdom  of 
David.  In  an  incredibly  short  time  this  peasant  warrior  had  won  more 
victories  against  greater  odds  than  any  other  leader  in  Israel's  history. 

228 


CAMPAIGNS  AGAINST  NEIGHBORING  PEOPLES 

The  results  of  these  victories  were  necessarily  ephemeral.  They  accom- 
plished, however,  three  things:  (1)  Judas  intimidated  his  foes  and  estab- 
lished his  prestige;  (2)  he  was  able  to  rescue  thousands  of  Jews  from 
the  hands  of  the  heathen;  and  (3)  by  bringing  them  back  to  Judea  he 
increased  its  population  and  laid  the  foundations  of  that  kingdom  which 
rose  as  the  result  of  his  patriotic  achievements. 

IV.  The  Battle  of  Beth=zacharias.  There  was  still  a  Syrian  out- 
post in  the  heart  of  Judea:  it  was  the  citadel  at  Jerusalem,  which  looked 
down  upon  the  temple  area.  This  Judas  attempted  to  capture,  but  in 
so  doing  incited  to  action  the  Syrian  king,  Antiochus  Eupator,  who  had 
succeeded  to  the  throne  after  the  death  of  his  father  Antiochus  Epiphanes. 
Under  the  direction  of  his  prime-minister  Lysias  he  collected  a  huge 
army  of  one  hundred  thousand  infantry  and  twenty  thousand  cavalry. 
To  this  was  added  thirty-two  elephants  with  full  military  equipment — 
the  heavy  ordinance  used  in  the  warfare  of  the  period.  The  approach 
from  the  plain  was  along  the  valley  of  Elah  and  up  past  Bethsura,  as  in 
the  last  Syrian  campaign.  Judas,  who  was  able  at  this  time  to  rally  an 
army  of  ten  thousand  men,  met  the  Syrian  host  near  the  town  of  Beth- 
zacharias,  a  little  north  of  Bethsura  on  the  central  highway  from  Hebron 
to  Jerusalem.  This  time  the  natural  advantages  were  with  the  Syrians, 
one  wing  of  whose  army  rested  upon  a  declining  hill  and  the  other  on 
the  level  plain.  Thus  they  were  able  to  utilize  their  entire  fighting  force 
and  to  launch  against  the  valiant  Jews  their  elephants  against  which  the 
heroism  of  an  Eleazar  was  fruitless.  For  the  first  time  during  this 
struggle  Judas  was  defeated  and  fell  back  upon  Jerusalem,  where  he 
was  closely  besieged.  Soon  the  Jews  were  obliged  to  surrender,  and  the 
Maccabean  cause  would  have  been  lost  had  not  complications  at  Antioch 
compelled  the  Syrians  to  retire. 

V.  Victories  Over  Nicanor.  In  the  treaty  which  followed  the  sur- 
render of  Jerusalem  the  religious  liberty  of  the  Jews  was  assured.  This 
concession  satisfied  the  majority  of  the  Hasideans,  so  that  henceforth 
Judas  found  himself  deserted  by  a  great  body  of  his  followers.  The 
apostate  high  priest  who  was  placed  in  control  of  the  temple  was  sup- 
ported by  Syrian  soldiery  and  Judas  was  obliged  to  resort  again  to  out- 
law life.  He  succeeded,  however,  in  winning  two  signal  victories  over 
Nicanor,  the  Syrian  general.  The  one  at  Capharsalama  was  probably 
fought  near  the  modern  town  of  Kefr  Silwan,  across  the  Kidron  Valley 
from  the  City  of  David  on  the  southern  slope  of  Jerusalem.  In  the  latter 
victory  Nicanor  was  slain,  and  Judas  was  left  for  the  moment  in  con- 
trol of  Judea. 

229 


LONG  CONTEST  FOR  POLITICAL  INDEPENDENCE 

VI.  The  Death  of  Judas.  Soon  another  Syrian  army  invaded  the 
land.  The  advance  was  from  the  northwest  up  over  the  pass  of  Beth- 
horon.  A  little  east  of  the  road  that  ascends  from  Lower  to  Upper 
Bethhoron,  near  where  he  won  his  first  great  battle  and  in  sight  of  his 
home  at  Modein,  the  intrepid  Jewish  champion  fought  his  last  battle. 
Terror  at  the  approach  of  the  enemy  had  thinned  his  ranks  imtil  he  was 
obliged  to  meet  them  with  only  eight  hundred  men  at  his  back.  Even 
against  these  great  odds  he  was  on  the  eve  of  victory  when  he  was  slain. 
At  the  sight  of  their  fallen  leader  his  followers  fled.  This  disastrous  end- 
ing of  his  career  as  a  warrior  obscured  to  a  great  extent  the  character  and 
quality  of  Judas's  services  for  his  people.  In  brief  (1)  he  taught  them  to 
fight  for  their  rights;  (2)  he  helped  them  to  save  their  law  and  traditions; 
(3)  he  secured  for  them  religious  freedom;  (4)  he  restored  many  of  the 
Jews  of  the  dispersion  and  thus  prepared  the  way  for  the  consolidated 
kingdom  which  later  rose  with  Jerusalem  as  the  centre;  (5)  he  inspired 
his  countrymen  with  ambitions  for  political  independence;  and  (6)  he 
set  them  a  noble  example  of  courage,  patriotism,  and  practical  piety. 
While  measured  by  the  higher  standards  of  a  later  day  Judas  is  not  with- 
out his  faults,  yet  he  is  unquestionably  one  of  the  great  heroes  of  Israel's 
history  and  an  example  to  all  of  unselfish  and  devoted  patriotism. 

VII.  The  Dissensions  in  the  Syrian  Court.  The  Jews  ultimately 
attained  political  independence  not  primarily  through  their  own  efforts, 
but  because  the  protracted  contests  between  the  rival  claimants  for  the 
Syrian  throne  gave  them  opportunities  which  they  quickly  improved. 
In  152  B.C.  a  youth  known  as  Alexander  Balas,  who  claimed  to  be  a 
son  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes,  raised  the  standard  of  revolt  against  the 
reigning  Syrian  king,  Demetrius  I.  The  kings  of  southwestern  Asia 
and  Egypt  at  first  lent  their  support  to  this  impostor.  By  150  B.C.  he 
had  succeeded  in  defeating  and  putting  to  death  Demetrius  I.  Two 
years  later,  however,  Demetrius  II,  the  son  of  the  deposed  king,  appeared 
with  a  large  body  of  Cretan  mercenaries  to  contest  the  throne  of  his 
father.  Many  of  the  Syrian  cities  at  once  espoused  his  cause.  Ptolemy 
Philometor,  of  Egypt,  finally  turned  against  Alexander  Balas;  and  in  145 
B.C.  this  strange  adventurer  was  slain  near  Antioch  by  his  own  followers. 
Soon  after  his  death,  however,  one  of  his  generals,  Tryphon,  appeared 
with  an  infant  son  of  Alexander  whom  he  sought  to  place  on  the  Syrian 
throne,  thus  perpetuating  the  feud  that  was  constantly  undermining  the 
power  of  the  Seleucid  kingdom. 

VIII.  Concessions  to  Jonathan.  The  Jews  profited  by  each  turn 
in  these  tortuous  politics.     In  158  b.c,  after  a  period  of  outlawry  in  the 

230 


CONCESSIONS  TO   JONATHAN 

wilderness  east  of  Judea,  Jonathan  and  his  followers  were  allowed  by 
Demetrius  I  to  settle  again  within  the  bounds  of  Judea.  Jonathan  es- 
tablished his  head-quarters  at  Michmash,  the  fortress  famous  for  the 
achievement  of  Saul's  valiant  son  Jonathan.  Here  he  ruled  over  the 
Jews  as  a  vassal  of  Demetrius,  who  retained  immediate  control  over  the 
citadel  at  Jerusalem  and  the  fortified  cities  that  had  been  built  along  the 
borders  of  Judea.  On  the  appearance  of  Alexander  Balas  in  152  B.C. 
Demetrius  I,  in  order  to  retain  the  loyalty  of  the  Jews,  permitted  Jona- 
than to  maintain  a  small  standing  army  and  to  rebuild  the  fortifications 
of  Jerusalem.  To  outbid  his  rival  the  impostor  Alexander  Balas  con- 
ferred upon  Jonathan  the  coveted  honor  of  the  high  priesthood,  thus 
making  him  both  the  civil  and  religious  head  of  the  Jewish  state.  Dis- 
regarding his  promises  to  Demetrius  and  the  contemptible  character  of 
Alexander,  Jonathan  at  once  proceeded  to  establish  his  new  authority. 
He  was  doubtless  more  acceptable  to  the  majority  of  the  Jews  than  the 
apostate  high  priests  whom  he  succeeded,  but  the  stricter  Hasideans 
naturally  regarded  it  as  a  sacrilege  that  a  man  whose  hands  were  stained 
with  war  and  bloodshed  should  perform  the  holiest  duties  in  the  temple 
service. 

Under  Alexander  Balas  Jonathan's  power  rapidly  increased.  He  was 
made  governor  of  Judea,  and,  under  pretence  of  supporting  the  waning 
fortunes  of  Alexander,  he  captured  in  succession  the  Philistine  cities  of 
Joppa,  Azotus  (Ashdod),  Ascalon,  and  Akron.  When  Demetrius  H 
became  master  of  Syria,  Jonathan  succeeded  by  rich  gifts  and  diplomacy 
in  so  far  gaining  the  support  of  the  new  king  that  part  of  the  territory  of 
Samaria  was  joined  to  Judea.  In  return  for  three  hundred  talents  they 
were  also  promised  exemption  from  taxation.  Furthermore,  member- 
ship in  one  of  the  royal  orders  was  conferred  upon  the  Maccabean  leader. 
Thus  by  good  fortune  and  by  often  questionable  diplomacy  the  Jews 
finally  secured  in  the  days  of  Jonathan  that  freedom  for  which  they  had 
fought  and  which  they  had  partially  won  under  the  valiant  Judas. 


§  CXII.     PEACE  AND  PROSPERITY  UNDER  SIMON  i.  Try- 

°  phon  s 

plans  to 

And  when  King  Demetrius  saw  that  the  land  was  quiet  p^ace 
before  him  and  that  no  resistance  was  made  to  him,  he  sent  of  Aiex 
away  all  his  forces,  each  one  to  his  own  home,  except  the 
foreign  mercenaries,  whom  he  had  enlisted  from  the  isles  of 
the  heathen.     All  the  troops,  however,  who  had  served  his  i'l^s'-fo') 

231 


ander 
on  the 
throne. 
(I  A\ac. 


PEACE  AND  PROSPERITY  UNDER  SIMON 

father  hated  him.  Now  Tryphon  was  one  of  those  who  had 
formerly  belonged  to  Alexander's  party,  and  when  he  saw 
that  all  the  troops  were  murmuring  against  Demetrius,  he 
went  to  Yamliku,  the  Arabian  who  was  bringing  up  Anti- 
ochus,  the  young  child  of  Alexander,  and  importuned  him 
that  he  should  deliver  him  to  him,  that  he  might  reign  in 
his  father's  place.  And  he  told  him  all  that  Demetrius  had 
done,  and  the  hatred  which  his  troops  bore  him.  And  he 
stayed  there  a  long  time. 

Now  after  this  Tryphon  returned,  and  with  him  the  young 
child  Antiochus,  and  he  assumed  the  sovereignty  and  put 
on  the  diadem.  And  there  were  gathered  to  him  all  the 
forces  which  Demetrius  had  sent  away  in  disgrace,  and 
they  fought  against  him,  and  he  fled  and  was  defeated. 
And  Tryphon  took  the  elephants  and  became  master  of 
Antioch. 

Then  Tryphon  tried  to  get  the  sovereignty  over  Asia  and 
to  put  on  the  diadem  and  to  engage  in  hostilities  against 
Antiochus  the  king.  But  he  was  afraid  lest  perhaps  Jon- 
athan might  not  allow  him,  and  that  he  might  fight  against 
him.  So  he  sought  a  way  to  take  him,  that  he  might  de- 
stroy him.  And  he  set  out  and  came  to  Bethshan.  Then 
Jonathan  went  out  to  meet  him  with  forty  thousand  picked 
soldiers  and  came  to  Bethshan.  And  when  Tryphon  saw 
that  he  came  with  a  great  army,  he  was  afraid  to  attack 
him,  and  he  received  him  honorably  and  commended  him 
to  all  his  Friends  and  gave  him  gifts,  and  commanded  his 
forces  to  be  obedient  to  him  as  to  himself.  And  he  said  to 
Jonathan,  Why  have  you  put  all  this  people  to  trouble,  since 
that  there  is  no  war  between  us?  Now  therefore  send  them 
away  to  their  homes,  retaining  for  yourself  only  a  few  men 
who  shall  be  with  you,  and  come  with  me  to  Ptolemais,  and  I 
will  give  it  to  you  with  the  rest  of  the  strongholds  and  the 
rest  of  the  forces  and  all  the  king's  officers,  and  I  will  set 
out  on  my  way  back,  for  this  is  the  cause  of  my  coming. 
Then  he  trusted  him  and  did  even  as  he  said,  and  sent  away 
his  forces  so  that  they  departed  into  the  land  of  Judah. 
But  he  reserved  for  himself  three  thousand  men,  of  whom 
he  left  two  thousand  in  Galilee,  while  one  thousand  went 
with  him. 

232 


PEACE  AND  PROSPERITY  UNDER  SIMON 

Now  as  soon  as  Jonathan  entered  Ptolemais,  the  people  of  4. , 
Ptolemais  shut  the  gates  and  laid  hands  on  him,  and  they  of  jo" 
slew  with  the  sword  all  who  came  in  with  him.     And  Try-  ^t^^?. 

•  c  II  •  r^    ft  1.  «        &Tya  the 

phon  sent  forces  and  horsemen  mto  Galilee,  and  mto  the  public 
great  plain,  to  destroy  all  of  Jonathan's  men.     But  they  ^^^i^t 
perceived  that  he  had  been  taken  and  had  perished,  and  those  ^^. 
who  were  with  him,  and  they  encouraged  one  another  and 
marched  in  closed  ranks,  prepared  to  fight.     And  when  those 
who  were  pursuing  them  saw  that  they  were  ready  to  fight 
for  their  lives,  they  turned  back  again.     Thus  they  all  came 
safely  into  the  land  of  Judah,  and  they  mourned  for  Jonathan 
and  those  who  were  with  him,  and  they  were  greatly  afraid. 
And  all  Israel  mourned  bitterly.     Then  all  the  heathen  who 
were  round  about  them  sought  to  destroy  them  utterly,  for 
they  said.  They  have  no  ruler  nor  any  to  help  them,  now 
therefore  let  us  fight  against  them  and  wipe  out  the  memory 
of  them  from  among  men. 

Now  when  Simon  heard  that  Tryphon  had  collected  a  vast  s. 
army  to  come  into  the  land  of  Judah  to  destroy  it  utterly,  of'sl-' 
and  saw  that  the  people  trembled  and  were  greatly  afraid,  ^^12^ 
he  went  up  to  Jerusalem  and  gathered  the  people  together,  (i3' ") 
and  encouraged  them  and  said  to  them.  You  yourselves 
know  all  the  things  that  I  and  my  brothers,  and  my  father's 
house,  have  done  for  the  laws  and  the  sanctuary,  and  the 
battles  and  times  of  distress  through  which  we  have  passed. 
In  this  cause  all  my  brothers  have  perished  for  Israel's  sake, 
and  I  alone  am  left.  And  now  be  it  far  from  me  that  I 
should  spare  my  own  life,  in  any  time  of  affliction ;  for  I  am 
not  better  than  my  brothers.  Rather  I  will  take  revenge  for 
my  nation,  and  for  the  sanctuary,  and  for  our  wives  and 
children,  because  all  the  heathen  are  gathered  to  destroy  us 
out  of  pure  hatred.  And  the  courage  of  the  people  rose  as 
they  heard  these  words.  And  they  answered  with  a  loud 
voice,  saying.  You  are  our  leader  instead  of  Judas  and  Jon- 
athan your  brothers.  Fight  our  battles,  and  we  will  do  all 
that  you  command.  So  he  gathered  together  all  the  war- 
riors and  made  haste  to  finish  the  walls  of  Jerusalem,  and 
fortified  the  entire  length  of  it.  And  he  sent  Jonathan  the 
son  of  Absalom  at  the  head  of  a  large  army  to  Joppa,  and  he 
drove  out  those  who  were  in  it,  and  stayed  there  in  it. 

233 


PEACE  AND  PROSPERITY  UNDER  SIMON 

And  after  this  Tryphon  came  to  invade  the  land  and  de- 
stroy it,  and  he  went  round  about  by  the  way  that  goes  to 
Adora;  and  Simon  and  his  army  marched  opposite  and 
abreast  of  him  to  every  place  wherever  he  went.  And  the 
people  of  the  citadel  sent  to  Tryphon  ambassadors  urging 
him  to  come  by  forced  marches  through  the  wilderness  to 
them  and  to  send  them  supplies.  So  Tryphon  made  ready 
all  his  cavalry  to  go.  But  that  night  a  very  deep  snow  fell, 
so  that  he  did  not  come  because  of  the  snow. 

Then  he  set  out  and  came  to  the  country  of  Gilead,  and 
when  he  came  near  to  Bascama,  he  slew  Jonathan,  and  he 
was  buried  there.  But  when  Tryphon  went  back  into  his 
own  land,  Simon  sent  and  took  the  bones  of  Jonathan  his 
brother,  and  buried  them  at  Modein,  his  ancestral  city.  And 
all  Israel  made  great  lamentation  over  him  and  mourned  for 
him  for  many  days.  And  Simon  built  a  monument  upon 
the  sepulchre  of  his  father  and  his  brothers,  and  raised  it 
aloft  to  the  sight,  with  polished  stone  on  the  back  and  front 
sides.  He  also  set  up  seven  pyramids,  one  opposite  another, 
for  his  father  and  his  mother  and  his  four  brothers.  And 
for  these  he  made  artistic  designs,  setting  about  them  great 
pillars,  and  upon  the  pillars  he  fashioned  different  kinds  of 
arms  as  an  everlasting  memorial,  and  beside  the  arms  ships 
carved,  that  they  should  be  seen  by  all  who  sail  on  the  sea. 
This  is  the  sepulchre  which  he  made  at  Modein,  which  stands 
there  at  the  present  time. 

Then  Simon  built  the  strongholds  of  Judea  and  fenced 
them  about  with  high  towers  and  great  walls  and  gates  and 
bars,  and  laid  up  stores  in  the  strongholds.  In  those  days 
he  laid  siege  to  Gazara,  and  surrounded  it  with  armies,  and 
made  an  engine  of  siege  and  brought  it  up  to  the  city,  and 
smote  a  tower  and  captured  it.  And  those  who  were  in  the 
engine  leaped  forth  into  the  city,  and  there  was  a  great  tumult 
in  the  city.  And  the  people  of  the  city  tore  their  garments, 
and  went  up  on  the  walls  with  their  wives  and  children,  and 
cried  with  a  loud  voice,  requesting  Simon  to  make  peace 
with  them.  And  they  said,  Do  not  deal  with  us  according 
to  our  wickednesses  but  according  to  your  mercy.  So  Simon 
was  reconciled  to  them  and  did  not  fight  against  them.  But 
he  expelled  them  from  the  city  and  cleansed  the  houses  in 

234 


PEACE  AND  PROSPERITY  UNDER  SIMON 

which  the  idols  were,  and  so  entered  into  it  with  singing  and 
praise.  And  when  he  had  put  all  nncleanness  out  of  it,  he 
placed  in  it  such  men  as  would  keep  the  law  and  made  it 
stronger  than  it  was  before,  and  built  a  dwelling  place  for 
himself  in  it. 

But  those  who  were  in  the  citadel  at  Jerusalem  were  pre-  9. 
vented  from  going  out  and  from  going  iuto  the  country,  and  andfor- 
from  buying  and  selling,  so  that  they  suffered  exceedingly  [|fi^^-f 
from  hunger,  and  a  great  number  of  them  perished  through  thecit- 
famine.     Then  they  cried  out  to  Simon  to  make  peace  with  je^-^* 
them.     He  did  so,  but  put  them  out  from  there,  and  cleansed  saiem 
the  citadel  from  its  pollutions.     And  he  entered  it  on  the 
twenty-third  day  of  the  second  month  in  the  one  hundred 
and  seventy-first  year,  with  praise  and  palm  branches,  with 
harps,  with  cymbals,  with  viols,  with  hymns,  and  with  songs, 
because  a  great  enemy  was  destroyed  out  of  Israel.     And  he 
ordained  that  they  should  observe  that  day  each  year  with 
gladness.     And  the  temple  mount,  which  was  beside  the 
citadel,  he  made  stronger  than  before,  and  there  he  dwelt 
with  his  men.     And  Simon  saw  that  John  his  son  had  grown 
to  manhood,  and  so  he  made  him  commander  of  all  his 
forces.     And  he  lived  in  Gazara. 

Now  when  they  heard  at  Rome  and  at  Sparta  that  Jon-  10.  Re- 
athan  was  dead,  they  were  very  sorry.     But  as  soon  as  they  oFaTil- 
leamed  that  his  brother  Simon  had  been  made  high  priest  ^s^^ 
in  his  place  and  ruled  the  country  and  its  cities,  they  wrote  Rome 
to  him  on  brass  tablets,  to  renew  with  him  the  friendship  and  Iparta 
the  treaty  which  they  had  made  with  Judas  and  Jonathan  ('4'^-'«) 
his  brothers. 

Moreover  King  Demetrius  confirmed  to  him  the  high  11. 
priesthood  according  to  these  things,  and  made  him  one  of  mTnon 
his  Friends,  and  bestowed  great  honor  upon  him,  for  he  had  l^^'ll^, 
heard  that  the  Jews  had  been  called  friends  and  allies  and  ity  by 
brothers  by  the  Romans,  and  that  they  had  met  the  ambas-  utul^' 
sadors  of  Simon  with  honor,  and  that  the  Jews  and  the  ^^^.j^J® 
priests  were  well  pleased  that  Simon  should  be  their  governor  people 
and  high  priest  forever,  until  there  should  arise  a  faithful  ^''  *'^ 
prophet ;  and  that  he  should  be  commander  over  them,  and 
should  take  charge  of  the  sanctuary,  to  appoint  men  on  his 
own  authority  over  their  works  and  over  the  country  and 

235 


PEACE  AND  PROSPERITY  UNDER  SIMON 

over  the  arms  and  over  the  forts,  and  that  he  should  be 
obeyed  by  all,  and  that  all  documents  drawn  up  in  the  coun- 
try should  be  written  in  his  name,  and  that  he  should  be 
clothed  in  purple,  and  wear  gold ;  and  that  it  should  not  be 
lawful  for  any  of  the  people  or  of  the  priests  to  nullify  any 
of  these  things,  or  to  resist  the  commands  that  he  should 
issue,  or  to  gather  an  assembly  in  the  country  without  his 
permission,  or  to  be  clothed  in  purple  or  to  wear  a  golden 
buckle.  But  whoever  should  do  otherwise,  or  act  in  de- 
fiance of  any  of  these  things,  should  be  liable  to  punishment. 
All  the  people  agreed  to  ordain  that  Simon  should  act  ac- 
cording to  these  regulations.  And  Simon  accepted  and  con- 
sented to  be  high  priest  and  to  be  general  and  governor  of 
the  Jews  and  of  the  priests  and  to  be  protector  of  all. 

And  they  gave  orders  to  put  this  writing  on  brass  tablets 
and  to  set  them  up  within  the  precinct  of  the  sanctuary  in  a 
conspicuous  place,  and  also  to  put  the  copies  of  it  in  the 
treasury  in  order  that  Simon  and  his  sons  might  have  them. 

So  the  land  had  rest  all  the  days  of  Simon, 

And  he  sought  the  good  of  his  nation. 

His  authority  and  his  glory  were  well-pleasing  to  them 

all  his  days. 
And  amid  all  his  glory  he  took  Joppa  for  a  haven, 
And  made  it  a  way  to  the  isles  of  the  sea. 
And  he  enlarged  the  boundaries  of  his  nation, 
And  became  master  of  the  land. 
He  also  brought  many  captives  together. 
And  made  himself  master  of  Gazara  and  Bethsura,  and 

the  citadel. 
Moreover  he  took  away  from  it  its  uncleannesses ; 
And  there  was  none  who  resisted  him. 
And  they  tilled  their  land  in  peace. 
And  the  earth  gave  her  increase. 
And  the  trees  of  the  plains  their  fruit. 

The  old  men  sat  in  the  streets. 
They  talked  together  of  the  coromon  good. 
And  the  young  men  put  on  glorious,  fine  apparel. 
He  provided  food  for  the  cities, 
236 


CAPTURE  AND  DEATH  OF  JONATHAN 

And  furnished  them  with  means  of  fortification, 
Until  his  famous  name  was  known  to  the  end  of  the 

earth. 
He  made  peace  in  the  land, 
And  Israel  rejoiced  with  great  joy. 
Everyone  sat  under  his  own  vine  and  fig  tree. 
And  there  was  no  one  to  make  them  afraid. 
And  none  who  warred  against  them  was  left  upon  the 

earth, 
For  the  kings  were  utterly  crushed  in  those  days. 
And  he  strengthened  all  the  distressed  of  his  people, 
He  was  full  of  zeal  for  the  law. 
And  every  lawless  and  wicked  person  he  banished. 
He  made  the  sanctuary  glorious. 
And  multiplied  the  vessels  of  the  temple. 


I.  Capture  and  Death  of  Jonathan.  It  was  not  strange  in  that 
corrupt  age  that  Jonathan,  who  had  risen  to  power  largely  by  intrigue, 
should  himself  in  the  end  fall  a  prey  to  treachery.  Tryphon,  the  general 
who  secretly  aspired  to  the  Syrian  throne,  by  lies  succeeded  in  mislead- 
ing even  the  wily  Jewish  leader.  His  object  was  to  gain  possession  of 
southern  Palestine,  and  he  evidently  believed  that  by  capturing  Jonathan 
he  would  easily  realize  his  ambition.  He  overlooked  the  fact,  however, 
that  Simon,  next  to  Judas  the  ablest  of  the  sons  of  Mattathias,  still  re- 
mained to  rally  and  lead  the  Jewish  patriots.  The  natural  barriers  of 
Judea  again  proved  insurmountable,  for  when  Tryphon  tried  repeatedly 
on  the  west,  south,  and  east  to  invade  the  central  uplands,  he  found  the 
passes  guarded  by  Simon  and  his  experienced  warriors.  Thus  baffled, 
the  treacherous  Tryphon  vented  his  disappointment  upon  Jonathan, 
whom  he  slew  in  Gilead.  As  the  would-be  usurper  advanced  north- 
ward, where  he  ultimately  met  the  fate  which  he  richly  deserved,  Simon 
and  his  followers  bore  the  body  of  Jonathan  back  to  Modein,  and  there 
they  reared  over  it  the  fourth  of  those  tombs  which  testified  to  the  war- 
like spirit  and  devotion  of  the  sons  of  Mattathias. 

n.  Character  and  Policy  of  Simon.  Simon,  who  was  at  this  crisis 
called  to  the  leadership  of  the  Jewsh  race,  had  been  famed  from  the  first 
for  his  moderation  and  wise  counsel.  In  many  campaigns  he  had  also 
shown  the  military  skill  and  courage  that  had  characterized  his  younger 
brothers.     In  him  the  noble  spirit  of  Judas  lived  again.     He  was  de- 

237 


PEACE  AND  PROSPERITY  UNDER  SIMON 

voted  to  the  law,  intent  upon  building  up  the  state,  and  at  the  same  time 
was  deeply  and  genuinely  interested  in  all  members  of  his  race,  whether 
in  Judea  or  in  distant  nations.  Like  David  and  Josiah,  he  was  a  true 
father  of  his  people  and  set  an  example  which  unfortunately  his  descend- 
ants failed  to  follow.  He  still  recognized  the  authority  of  Demetrius  II, 
but  the  Syrian  kingdom  was  so  weak  that  Simon  succeeded  in  securing 
a  definite  promise  of  the  remission  of  all  taxes,  and  ruled  practically  as  an 
independent  sovereign.  To  strengthen  his  position  he  sent  an  embassy 
laden  with  rich  gifts  to  Rome.  During  a  later  crisis  in  his  rule  its  pres- 
tige proved  of  great  value,  but  Simon  in  following  the  example  of  his 
brothers  gave  to  Rome  that  claim  upon  Judea  that  was  destined  within 
less  than  a  century  to  put  an  end  to  Jewish  independence.  In  still  fur- 
ther consolidating  and  developing  the  resources  of  his  people  and  in  pre- 
paring for  future  expansion,  Simon  laid  the  foundations  for  the  later 
Jewish  kingdom.  His  policy  also  brought  to  Palestine  that  peace  and 
prosperity  which  made  his  rule  one  of  the  few  bright  spots  in  Israel's 
troubled  history. 

III.  His  Conquests.  The  chief  conquest  of  Simon  was  the  capture 
of  Gazara,  the  ancient  Gezer.  This  lay  on  the  western  side  of  the  plain 
of  Ajalon.  It  guarded  the  approaches  to  Judea  from  the  west,  and  above 
all  the  highway  that  ran  from  Joppa  and  along  which  passed  the  com- 
merce of  the  Mediterranean,  After  a  stubborn  resistance  he  captured 
the  town,  deported  part  of  its  heathen  population,  and  settled  Jewish 
colonists  in  their  place.  Joppa  also  was  under  Simon's  control.  Thus  he 
also  prepared  the  way  for  that  commercial  expansion  which  was  necessary 
if  the  Jewish  state  was  to  sur\T[ve  in  the  midst  of  its  many  powerful  foes. 
Early  in  his  reign  Simon  laid  siege  to  the  Syrian  garrison  in  Jerusalem, 
and  finally,  amidst  the  rejoicing  of  the  people,  captured  this  strong- 
hold and  delivered  Judea  from  the  presence  of  the  hated  foreigners.  The 
temple  area  was  also  fortified.  Simon's  victories,  and  especially  his  con- 
quest of  the  Greek  cities  on  the  plain,  aroused  the  Syrian  king,  Antiochus 
Sidetes,  the  son  of  Demetrius  I,  to  demand  heavy  indemnity.  \Nhen 
Simon  refused  to  pay  the  tribute  a  Syrian  army  was  sent  to  enforce  the 
claim,  but  were  defeated  by  a  Je^\^sh  force  under  John  Hyrcanus.  This 
victory  left  Simon  during  the  remainder  of  his  reign  practically  inde- 
pendent of  outside  authority. 

IV.  Simon's  Authority.  Simon,  with  commendable  moderation,  re- 
frained from  attempting  to  secure  for  himself  the  title  of  king.  He  did, 
however,  issue  coins  in  his  own  name,  although  that  right  was  ordmarily 
the  prerogative  only  of  kings.     Upon  him  was  conferred  by  the  gra  tef ul 

238 


SIMON'S  AUTHORITY 

people  the  authority  that  had  first  been  given  Jonathan  by  the  shameless 
Alexander  Balas.  In  return  for  Simon's  many  services  and  as  a  tribute 
to  the  achievements  of  his  family  he  was  proclaimed  by  the  Jews  not 
only  civil  governor  and  military  leader,  but  also  high  priest.  He  thus 
became  their  rightful  leader  both  in  peace  and  war,  and  the  representative 
of  the  nation  in  the  sacred  services  of  the  temple.  In  all  but  name  he 
was  king,  and  Jewish  history  would  have  doubtless  flowed  in  calmer 
channels  had  his  descendants  been  contented  with  these  substantial 
honors. 

V.  Completion  of  the  Psalter.  The  reign  of  Simon  probably  wit- 
nessed the  completion  of  the  Psalter.  Many  of  the  psalms,  especially 
those  in  the  latter  half  of  the  book,  bear  the  unmistakable  marks  of  the 
Maccabean  struggle.  In  Psalms  74  and  89,  for  example,  there  are  clear 
references  to  the  desecration  of  the  temple  and  the  bitter  persecutions 
of  Antiochus.  They  voice  the  wails  of  despair  which  then  rose  from  the 
lips  of  many  Jews.  Many  other  psalms,  as,  for  example,  the  one  hun- 
dred and  eighteenth,  express  that  intense  love  and  devotion  to  the  law 
which  was  from  this  time  on  in  many  ways  the  most  prominent  char- 
acteristic of  Judaism,  The  prevailingly  prominent  liturgical  element  that 
characterizes  the  concluding  psalms  of  the  Psalter  suggest  their  original 
adaptation  to  the  song  services  of  the  temple.  Under  the  reign  of  Simon 
the  temple  choir  was  probably  extended  and  greater  prominence  given 
to  this  form  of  the  temple  service.  The  peace  and  prosperity  in  the  days 
of  Simon  gave  the  opportunity  and  the  incentive  to  put  in  final  form  the 
earlier  collections  of  psalms  and  probably  to  add  the  introduction  found 
in  Psalms  1-2  and  the  concluding  doxology  in  Psalm  150.  The  Psalter 
appears  to  have  been  the  last  to  be  completed  of  all  the  Old  Testament 
books,  so  that  probably  before  the  close  of  Simon's  reign  all  of  the  pres- 
ent Old  Testament  books  were  WTitten.  Discussions  regarding  the 
value  of  such  books  as  Ecclesiastes,  Song  of  Solomon,  and  Esther  con- 
tinued until  nearly  the  close  of  the  first  Christian  century,  when  at  last 
the  canon  of  the  Old  Testament  was  completed. 

VI.  The  Religious  Life  Reflected  in  the  Later  Psalms.  The 
prevailing  note  in  the  psalms  found  in  the  latter  part  of  the  Psalter  is 
joyous.  A  deep  sense  of  gratitude  to  Jehovah  for  deliverance  pervades 
them.  The  Jews  felt  that  Jehovah  had  indeed  delivered  them  "as  a 
bird  from  the  snare  of  the  fowler"  (Psalm  124).  In  the  near  back- 
ground were  the  dark  days  of  persecution.  Hostile  foes  still  encircled 
Israel,  but  trust  in  Jehovah's  power  and  willingness  to  deliver  triumphed 
over  all  fear. 

239 


RULE  OF  JOHN  HYRCANUS  AND  ARISTOBULUS 

Oh,  give  thanks  to  Jehovah  for  he  is  good, 
For  his  mercy  endureth  forever. 
He  hath  delivered  us  from  our  enemies; 
Oh,  give  thanks  to  the  God  of  heaven, 
For  his  mercy  endureth  forever, 

was  the  oft-repeated  refrain  that  was  sung  in  the  temple  service  by  the 
warriors  when  they  returned  victorious  from  battle  and  by  the  people  as 
they  went  about  their  tasks.  The  sense  of  constant  danger  and  of  great 
achievement  bound  together  the  Jews  of  this  period  as  perhaps  never 
before  since  the  days  of  the  exile.  The  same  experiences  developed  a 
powerful  religious  consciousness.  Jehovah  had  repeatedly  and  signally 
demonstrated  that  he  was  in  their  midst.  Without  his  strong  hand  they 
were  helpless  against  their  foes.  The  apostates  had  been  expelled,  and 
the  classes  that  remained  were  bound  closely  together  by  their  desire  to 
preserve  their  hard-won  liberties,  by  their  devotion  to  the  temple  and  its 
services  and  by  a  profound  respect  for  the  authority  of  their  scriptures. 
The  voice  of  the  living  prophet  was  silent.  The  priests  had  ceased  to 
teach  and  were  simply  ministers  at  the  altar,  and  in  the  turmoil  of  the 
Maccabean  struggle  the  teaching  of  the  wise  had  practically  come  to  an 
end.  Instead  the  Jews  became  in  every  sense  the  people  of  the  book.  It 
was  at  this  time  and  as  a  result  of  the  forces  at  work  in  this  age  that  the 
scribes  attained  their  place  as  the  chief  teachers  of  the  people.  It  was 
natural  that  they  who  copied,  edited,  and  above  all  interpreted  the  re- 
vered Law  and  the  Prophets  should  have  the  ear  of  the  masses  and 
should  be  regarded  more  and  more  as  the  authorized  teachers  of  the 
Jewish  race.     Judaism  had  at  last  attained  its  maturity. 


§  CXIII.     THE  RULE  OF  JOHN  HYRCANUS  AND 
ARISTOBULUS 

1.  Ptoi-      Now  Ptolemy  the  son  of  Abubus  had  been  appointed  com- 

^y     mander  over  the  plain  of  Jericho.     He  possessed  much  silver 

tardiy     and  gold,  for  he  was  the  high  priest's  son-in-law.     Then  he 

(I  Mac.   grew  ambitious  and  determined  to  make  himself  master  of 

16"-")    ^jjg  country.     So  he  formed  treacherous  plots  against  Simon 

and  his  sons,  to  make  away  with  them.     Now  Simon  was 

visiting  the  cities  that  were  in  the  country  and  providing  for 

their  good  management.     And  he  went  down  to  Jericho 

240 


RULE  OF  JOHN  HYRCANUS  AND  ARISTOBULUS 

with  Mattathias  and  Judas  his  sons,  in  the  one  hundred 
and  seventy-seventh  year,  in  the  eleventh  month,  that  is 
the  month  Sebat.  Then  the  son  of  Abubus  received  them 
treacherously  in  a  little  stronghold  that  is  called  Dok,  which 
he  had  built,  and  made  them  a  great  banquet,  and  his  men 
were  there.  And  when  Simon  and  his  sons  were  drunk, 
Ptolemy  and  his  men  rose  up  and  took  their  weapons,  and 
rushing  in  upon  Simon  in  the  banquet  hall,  they  slew  him 
and  his  two  sons,  and  some  of  his  servants.  Thus  he  com- 
mitted a  great  act  of  treachery  and  paid  back  evil  for  good. 

Then  Ptolemy  wrote  what  had  happened,  and  asked  the  2.  Hig 
king  to  send  forces  to  aid  him,  and  promised  to  hand  over  tomuV 
to  him  their  coimtry  and  the  cities.     And  he  sent  others  to  der 
Gazara  to  make  away  with  John.     And  to  the  officers  com-  H'yr"ca- 
manding  thousands  he  sent  letters  to  come  to  him,  that  he  ("is-a) 
might  give  them  silver  and  gold  and  gifts.     And  others  he 
sent  to  take  possession  of  Jerusalem  and  the  temple-mount. 
But  some  ran  before  to  Gazara  and  told  John  that  his  father 
and  brothers  had  perished,  and  they  said.  He  has  sent  to 
slay  you  too.     And  when  he  heard,  he  was  dimib  with  amaze- 
ment, but  he  seized  the  men  who  came  to  destroy  him,  and 
slew  them,  for  he  saw  that  they  were  seeking  to  destroy  him. 

Now  when  Hyrcanus  had  received  the  high  priesthood  s.Hyr- 
which  his  father  had  held  before  him  and  had  offered  sacri-  at"emp\ 
fice  to  God,  he  made  haste  to  attack  Ptolemy,  that  he  might  |j°,]!JJ,| 
relieve  his  mother  and  brothers.     So  he  laid  siege  to  the  men 
fortress  and  was  superior  to  Ptolemy  in  other  respects ;  but  jiw" 
he  was  defeated  through  his  natural  affection.     For  when  ^,^fj '• 
Ptolemy  was  distressed,  he  brought  Hyrcanus's  mother  and 
his  brothers  and  set  them  upon  the  wall  and  beat  them  with 
rods  in  the  sight  of  all  and  threatened  that  unless  Hyrca- 
nus went  away  immediately,  he  would  throw  them  down 
headlong.     At  this  sight  Hyrcanus's  pity  and  concern  over- 
came his  anger. 

And  since  the  siege  was  delayed  in  this  way,  the  year  of  4.  Ptoi- 
rest  came  on,  during  which  the  Jews  rest  every  seventh  year  e.^Jpe 
as  they  do  on  every  seventh  day.     In  this  year,  therefore,   ('^^ 
Ptolemy  was  freed  from  being  besieged.     He  also  slew  the 
brothers  of  Hyrcanus  with  their  mother,  and  fled  to  Zeno, 
who  was  the  tyrant  of  Philadelphia. 

241 


RULE  OF  JOHN  HYRCAXUS  AND  ARISTOBULUS 

fi.ln-         And  now  Antiochus  [Sidetes]  was  so  angry  at  what  he 

vasion    jj^^  suffered  from  Simon  that  he  made  an  expedition  into 

b^'ufe    Judea  and  laid  siege  to  Jerusalem  and  shut  up  Hyrcanus. 

Syrian    But  Hyrcanus  opened  the  tomb  of  David,  who  was  the  richest 

(^)°^       of  all  kings,  took  from  there  more  than  three  thousand 

talents  of  money  and  induced  Antiochus  upon  the  promise 

of  three  thousand  talents  to  raise  the  siege.     Moreover  he 

was  the  first  of  the  Jews  who  had  plenty  of  money,  and  so 

began  to  hire  foreign  mercenaries. 

e.Capt-       At  another  time,  when  Antiochus  had  gone  upon  an  ex- 

^t°^     pedition  against  the  Medes  and  thus  given  Hyrcanus  an 

Jordan    Opportunity  to  be  revenged  upon  him,  Hyrcanus  made  an 

marita^n  attack  upou  the  cities  of  Syria,  thinking,  as  proved  to  be  the 

byHyr-  case,  that  he  would  find  them  empty  of  good  troops.     So  he 

canus     took  Mcdcba  and  Samaga  with  their  surrounding  towns; 

likewise  Shechem  and  Mount  Gerizim. 
7.  Con-  Hyrcanus  also  took  Dora  and  Marissa,  cities  of  Idumea, 
andlu-  ^^d  subdued  all  the  Idumeans.  He  permitted  them  to  stay 
daizing  in  their  country,  if  they  would  undergo  circumcision  and 
idu-^  conform  to  the  Jewish  laws.  They  were  so  desirous  of  liv- 
means  jjjg  ^^  ^^Q  couutry  of  their  fathers  that  they  submitted  to 
xiiij^     circmncision  and  the  other  Jewish  ways  of  living.     From 

this  time  on,  therefore,  they  were  none  other  than  Jews. 

s.capt-       Hyrcanus  also  proceeded  as  far  as  Samaria  and  invested 

of  sa-     it  on  all  sides  with  a  wall,  and  placed  his  sons,  Aristobulus 

maria     and  Antigonus  in  charge  of  the  siege.     They  pushed  it  with 

wlr'i,  such  vigor  that  a  famine  prevailed  within  the  city,  so  that 

^'"■''^     the  inhabitants  were  forced  to  eat  what  was  never  before 

regarded  as  food.     They  also  invited  Antiochus  to  come  to 

their  assistance  and  he  readily  responded  to  their  invitation, 

but  he  was  beaten  by  Aristobulus  and  Antigonus,  and  he 

was  pursued  as  far  as  Scythopolis  by  these  brothers  and  fled 

away  from  them.     So  they  returned  to  Samaria  and  shut 

9.  The    up  the  multitude  within  the  wall  again,  and  when  they  had 

opposi-    taken  the  city,  they  tore  it  down  and  made  slaves  of  its 

tion  •If,, 

of  the     mhabitants. 

^es""  However  the  prosperity  of  Hyrcanus  caused  the  Jews  to 
to  Hyr-  envy  him ;  and  they  who  were  worst  disposed  to  him  were 
(Ant.  the  Pharisees.  Now  Hyrcanus  was  one  of  their  disciples  and 
los"*      had  been  greatly  beloved  by  them.    But  once  when  he  invited 

242 


RULE  OF  JOHN  HYRCANUS  AND  ARISTOBULUS 

them  to  a  feast  and  entertained  them  kindly  and  saw  them 
in  a  good  humor,  he  began  to  say  to  them  that  they  knew 
that  he  desired  to  be  a  righteous  man  and  do  all  things  by 
which  he  might  please  God  and  them,  for  the  Pharisees  are 
philosophers.  However,  he  desired,  if  they  observed  him 
offending  in  any  respect  or  departing  from  the  right  way, 
that  they  would  call  him  back  and  correct  him.  When  they 
testified  that  he  was  entirely  virtuous  he  was  well  pleased 
with  their  approval.  But  one  of  his  guests,  Eleazar  by  name, 
was  a  man  malignant  by  nature,  who  delighted  in  dissension. 
This  man  said:  "Since  you  wish  to  know  the  truth,  if  you 
really  desire  to  do  what  is  right,  lay  down  the  high  priest- 
hood and  content  yourself  with  the  civil  government  of  the 
people."  And  when  Hyrcanus  desired  to  know  for  what 
cause  he  ought  to  lay  down  the  high  priesthood,  the  other 
replied:  "We  have  heard  from  old  men  that  your  mother 
was  a  captive  in  the  reign  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes."  This 
story  was  false,  and  Hyrcanus  was  provoked  against  him. 
All  the  Pharisees  likewise  were  very  indignant  with  him. 

Now  there  was  a  certain  Jonathan,  a  great  friend  of  Hyr-  lo.  The 
canus,  but  of  the  sect  of  the  Sadducees,  whose  ideas  are  the  [^g""^" 
opposite  of  those  of  the  Pharisees.  He  told  Hyrcanus  that  ^[J[^^" 
Eleazar  had  cast  that  slur  upon  him  according  to  the  com-  («"  0 
mon  opinion  of  all  the  Pharisees  and  that  this  would  be 
made  clear  if  he  would  ask  them  the  question.  What  punish- 
ment they  thought  this  man  deserved?  For  in  this  way  he 
might  be  sure  that  the  slur  was  not  laid  on  him  with  their 
approval,  if  they  advised  punishing  him  as  the  crime  de- 
served. Therefore  when  Hyrcanus  asked  this  question,  the 
Pharisees  answered  that  the  man  deserved  stripes  and  im- 
prisonment, but  it  did  not  seem  right  to  punish  a  slur  with 
death.  And  indeed  the  Pharisees  ordinarily  are  not  apt  to 
be  severe  in  punishment.  At  this  mild  sentence  Hyrcanus 
was  very  angry  and  thought  that  this  man  reproved  him 
with  their  approval.  It  was  this  Jonathan  who  influenced 
him  so  far  that  he  made  him  join  the  Sadducees  and  leave 
the  party  of  the  Pharisees  and  abolish  the  decrees  that  they 
had  thus  imposed  on  the  people  and  punish  those  who  obeyed 
them.  This  was  the  source  of  the  hatred  with  which  he  and 
his  sons  were  regarded  by  the  multitude. 

243 


(II' 


RULE  OF  JOHN  HYRCANUS  AND  ARISTOBULUS 

11.  The  But  when  Hyrcanus  had  put  an  end  to  this  sedition,  ho 
Hyr-''^  afterward  lived  happily  and  administered  the  government  in 
^f""^     the  best  manner  for  thirty-one  years  and  then  died,  leaving 

behind  him  five  sons.  He  was  esteemed  by  God  worthy  cf 
the  three  highest  honors,  the  rulership  of  his  nation,  the 
high  priesthood,  and  prophecy,  for  God  was  with  him  and 
enabled  him  to  predict  the  future. 

12.  As-  Now  when  Hyrcanus  was  dead,  his  eldest  son  Aristobulus, 
li^^'  intent  upon  changing  the  government  into  a  monarchy,  was 
of^the  the  first  to  put  a  diadem  on  his  head.  This  Aristobulus  loved 
ship  by  his  next  brother  Antigonus  and  treated  him  as  an  equal,  but 
bujus°     the  others  he  kept  in  bonds.     He  also  cast  his  mother  into 

prison  because  she  disputed  the  government  with  him,  for 
Hyrcanus  had  left  her  in  control  of  everything.  He  also 
proceeded  to  that  degree  of  barbarity  that  he  killed  her  in 
prison  with  hunger.  Moreover  he  was  estranged  from  his 
brother  Antigonus  by  false  charges  and  also  slew  him,  al- 
though he  seemed  to  have  a  great  affection  for  him  and  had 
shared  the  kingdom  with  him.  But  Aristobulus  immediately 
repented  of  the  slaughter  of  his  brother;  on  which  account 
his  disease  grew  upon  him. 
His  Then  Aristobulus  died,  after  having  reigned  a  year.    He 

quest  of  was  Called  a  lover  of  the  Greeks  and  conferred  many  bene- 
Gaiiiee  fi^g  ou  his  country.  He  also  made  a  war  against  Iturea 
[Galilee],  and  added  a  great  part  of  it  to  Judea  and  com- 
pelled the  inhabitants,  if  they  wished  to  remain  in  that 
country,  to  be  circumcised  and  to  live  according  to  the 
Jewish  laws. 

I.  Murder  of  Simon.  Even  his  moderation  and  kindly  rule  did  not 
deliver  Simon  from  the  violent  death  that  overtook  all  the  sons  of  Matta- 
thias.  His  murderer  was  his  son-in-law,  a  certain  Ptolemy,  who  was 
governor  of  the  Jordan  Valley,  the  resources  of  which  had  been  developed 
under  Simon.  Ptolemy  trusted  to  the  support  of  the  Syrian  court,  but 
he  failed  to  reckon  with  two  things:  (1)  the  loyalty  of  the  people  to  their 
Maccabean  leaders;  and  (2)  the  ability  of  Simon's  son,  John  Hyrcanus. 
Instead  of  falling  a  victim  to  Ptolemy's  plot,  John  at  once  went  to  Jeru- 
salem where  he  was  made  the  high  priest  and  governor  by  the  people. 
Ptolemy,  who  was  besieged  in  the  castle  of  Dok,  saved  his  miserable  life 
only  by  shameless  perfidy. 

244 


THE  SYRIAN  INVASION 

II.  The  Syrian  Invasion.  Antiochus  Sidetes  proved  the  ablest 
Syrian  king  of  this  period.  Although  his  first  attack  had  been  repelled 
by  Simon,  he  again  attempted,  on  the  accession  of  Hyrcanus,  to  re- 
establish his  authority  in  Palestine.  Josephus,  in  his  account,  obscures 
this  humiliating  chapter  in  Jewish  history.  The  statement  that  Hyr- 
canus took  from  the  tomb  of  David  vast  wealth  and  thus  purchased  im- 
munity from  Syrian  attack  has  all  the  characteristics  of  an  Oriental  tale. 
Instead,  Antiochus  Sidetes  not  only  besieged  but  captured  Jerusalem, 
and  doubtless  compelled  the  Jews  to  pay  heavy  tribute.  Preferring, 
however,  to  retain  their  loyalty  rather  than  to  crush  them,  he  left  John 
Hyrcanus  in  control  of  Judea,  and  Jerusalem  escaped  destruction.  In 
the  disastrous  campaign  against  the  Parthians  in  which  Antiochus  lost  his 
life  John  Hyrcanus  accompanied  him  with  a  following  of  Jewish  soldiers. 
The  death  of  Antiochus  Sidetes  in  129  B.C.  at  last  left  the  Jews  free 
to  develop  their  kingdom  without  further  fear  of  Syrian  interference. 
This  event  marks  for  the  Jews  the  attainment  of  absolute  political 
freedom — a  privilege  which  they  continued  to  enjoy  for  a  little  over 
half  a  century. 

III.  John's  Military  Policy  and  Conquests.  John  possessed  the 
characteristic  ambitions  and  energy  of  his  family.  In  his  policy  he  also 
seems  to  have  been  strongly  influenced  by  the  achievements  of  Israel's 
early  conquering  king,  David.  His  aim  was  to  build  up  a  small  empire, 
and  by  crushing  the  ancient  foes  of  Israel  to  secure  immunity  from 
further  attack.  In  employing  foreign  mercenaries  he  also  followed  the 
example  of  King  David.  Doubtless  he  was  influenced  in  doing  so  by  his 
experiences  in  the  Parthian  campaign.  This  policy,  how^ever,  was  fat 
removed  from  the  spirit  of  the  early  Maccabean  leaders  who  had  un- 
sheathed the  sword  in  behalf  of  their  principles.  John's  first  campaign 
was  against  the  cities  to  the  east  of  the  Jordan,  and  resulted  in  the  con- 
quest of  the  towns  of  Medeba  and  Samaga  and  the  territory  subject  to 
them.  The  conquest  of  Shechem  and  southern  Samaria  was  undoubt- 
edly prompted  both  by  hereditary  hatred  toward  the  Samaritans  and  by 
the  desire  to  provide  an  outlet  for  the  growing  Jewish  population.  After 
standing  for  two  centuries,  the  Samaritan  temple  on  Mount  Gerizim  was 
destroyed  by  the  Jews.  This  sacrilegious  act  naturally  intensified  that 
hatred  between  Jew  and  Samaritan  which  burned  so  fiercely  during  the 
early  part  of  the  first  Christian  century.  Marissa  and  Dora,  the  chief 
cities  of  the  Idumeans,  were  next  conquered.  With  strange  inconsist- 
ency, John  Hyrcanus,  whose  ancestors  had  first  taken  up  the  sword  in 
defence  of  religious  liberty,  compelled  the  descendants  of  their  old  foes, 

245 


RULE  OF  JOHN  HYRCANUS  AND  ARISTOBULUS 

the  Edomites,  to  give  up  their  national  religion  or  else  go  into  exile. 
This  policy  was  fraught  with  far-reaching  consequences,  for  among 
those  appointed  to  rule  over  the  conquered  Edomites  was  Antipater,  the 
ancestor  of  Herod,  who  was  destined  to  rule  the  Jews  and  to  initiate  that 
long  series  of  disasters  that  culminated  in  the  destruction  of  the  Jewish 
state.  Last  of  all,  John  Hyrcanus  advanced  to  the  conquest  of  the 
Greek  city  of  Samaria.  Because  of  its  natural  strength  and  formidable 
defences  a  year  was  required  for  the  siege,  and  it  was  ultimately  captured 
only  through  famine.  The  sons  of  John  Hyrcanus  succeeded  in  holding 
at  bay  the  Syrian  armies  that  were  sent  to  relieve  the  besieged.  The  con- 
quered inhabitants  were  sold  as  slaves,  and  the  city  was  left  for  a  time  in 
complete  ruins.  The  conquest  of  Scythopolis,  the  ancient  Bethshean, 
extended  the  bounds  of  John's  kingdom  to  the  southern  hills  of  Galilee. 
Thus  he  became  master  of  a  small  empire  extending  out  toward  the 
desert  on  the  east,  to  the  South  Country  on  the  south,  touching  the  sea 
at  Joppa,  and  including  the  entire  territory  of  ancient  Samaria  on  the 
north.  While  not  as  large  as  the  kingdom  of  David,  it  was  a  more  per- 
fect political  unit,  and  offered  superior  opportunities  for  commerce  and 
internal  developemnt. 

IV.  The  Break  with  the  Pharisees.  The  successes  of  John  Hyr- 
canus blinded  the  majority  of  the  nation  to  the  real  issues  at  stake.  But  a 
powerful  group,  which  during  the  Maccabean  period  appeared  for  the 
first  time  under  the  name  of  Pharisees,  began  to  withdraw  their  allegiance 
and  silently,  at  least,  to  protest  against  a  high  priest  whose  chief  ambition 
was  conquest.  The  story  which  Josephus  tells  to  explain  the  defection 
of  the  Pharisees  may  be  simply  a  popular  tradition,  but  it  is  indicative 
of  that  division  within  Judaism  which  ultimately  wrecked  the  Macca- 
bean state.  From  the  days  of  John  Hyrcanus,  the  Maccabean  rulers, 
with  only  one  exception,  were  compelled  to  meet  the  silent  but  strong 
opposition  of  the  Pharisees.  As  a  result  they  turned  to  the  rising  party 
of  the  Sadducees  which  henceforth  identified  itself  with  the  interests 
of  the  reigning  family.  Thus  in  the  year  of  its  greatest  triumph  the 
Jewish  state  became  a  house  divided  against  itself.  Estranged  from 
the  better-minded  religious  leaders  of  the  nation,  John  Hyrcanus 
and  his  successors  followed  an  increasingly  secular,  selfish  policy  until 
they  completely  forgot  the  noble  ideals  for  which  their  fathers  had 
striven. 

V.  The  Reign  of  Aristobulus.  The  accession  of  Aristobulus  marks 
a  triumph  of  that  Hellenism  against  which  Judas  and  Simon  had  un- 
sheathed the  sword.     Like  many  an  Oriental  monarch,  he  established 

246 


THE  REIGN  OF  ARISTOBULUS 

his  position  on  the  throne  by  the  murder  of  all  members  of  his  family  who 
might  contest  his  power.  His  inhuman  cruelty  to  his  mother  and  the 
suspicions  which  led  him  to  murder  his  brother  reveal  a  barbarous  spirit 
that  can  only  be  explained  as  a  result  of  the  wTong  ambitions  that  had 
already  taken  possession  of  Israel's  rulers.  Aristobulus's  brief  reign  of 
one  year  is  marked  by  two  significant  acts.  The  first  is  the  assumption 
of  the  title  of  king.  On  his  own  initiative,  and  apparently  without  the 
consent  of  the  people,  he  placed  the  diadem  upon  his  head.  The  other 
important  act  was  the  conquest  of  part  of  the  territory  of  Iturea,  which 
was  known  in  later  times  as  Galilee.  He  found  it  occupied  by  a  mixed 
Syrian  and  Greek  population  in  which  were  probably  a  few  descendants 
of  the  ancient  Israelites.  Following  the  policy  of  his  family,  he  doubtless 
at  once  inaugurated  a  system  of  colonization  which  carried  to  Galilee  a 
strong  Jewish  population.  Henceforth,  by  virtue  of  race,  language,  and 
religion,  Galilee  was  closely  bound  to  Judea. 


I  CXIV.     THE  PHARISEES,  SADDUCEES,  AND  ESSENES 

The  Jews  have  three  sects  of  philosophy :  the  Essenes,  the  i.  Be- 
Sadducees,  and  those  called  Pharisees.     The  Pharisees  do  offhe 
not  yield  to  luxury  but  despise  that  kind  of  life;   and  they  ^^^1"" 
follow  the  guidance  of  reason,  and  what  that  prescribes  to  (Jos. 
them  as  good,  they  do.     They  also  pay  respect  to  those  ad-  xvVii, 
vanced  in  years  nor  are  they  so  bold  as  to  contradict  them  *'•  *'"'> 
in  anything  which  they  have  introduced.     While  they  be- 
lieve that  all  things  are  done  by  predestination,  they  do  not 
take  away  from  a  man  the  choice  of  acting  as  he  deems 
proper,  for  they  believe  that  it  is  God's  will  that  an  event  be 
decided  for  good  or  evil  both  by  the  divine  counsel  and  by  the 
man  who  is  willing  to  accede  to  it.     They  also  believe  that 
souls  possess  immortal  power  and  that  under  the  earth  there 
will  be  rewards  or  punishments  according  as  men  have  lived 
virtuously  or  viciously  in  this  life,  and  that  the  vicious  are 
to  be  detained  in  an  everlasting  prison  and  that  the  virtuous 
shall  have  the  power  to  live  again. 

On  account  of  this  doctrine  they  have  great  influence  Their 
with  the  people,  and  whatsoever  they  do  in  connection  with  f^^"^- 
the  divine  worship,  prayers  and  sacrifices,  they  perform  in  overth« 
accordance  with  the  direction  of  the  Pharisees.  ^)'''° 

247 


THE  PHARISEES,  SADDUCEES,  AND  ESSENES 

But  the  doctrine  of  the  Sadducees  is  that  souls  die  with  the 
bodies,  nor  do  they  give  heed  to  anything  beyond  these 
things  which  the  law  enjoins.  They  deny  predestination 
entirely  and  assert  that  God  exercises  no  oversight  over  any 
evil  doing  and  they  say  that  good  or  evil  lies  before  man  to 
choose,  and,  according  to  each  man's  inclination,  he  chooses 
the  one  or  the  other. 

They  also  think  it  virtuous  to  dispute  with  those  teach- 
ers of  philosophy  which  they  follow.  This  doctrine,  however, 
is  accepted  by  only  a  few,  but  these  are  of  the  highest  rank. 
They  are  able  to  accomplish  almost  nothing  by  themselves ; 
for  when  they  come  to  power,  unwillingly  but  perforce,  they 
accede  to  the  Pharisaic  doctrine,  for  otherwise  they  would 
not  be  tolerated  by  the  multitude. 

The  doctrine  of  the  Essenes  is  that  all  things  are  best  left 
to  God.  They  teach  the  immortality  of  souls  and  think 
that  the  rewards  of  righteousness  are  to  be  earnestly  striven 
for ;  and  when  they  send  what  they  have  dedicated  to  God 
to  the  temple,  they  offer  their  sacrifices  in  accordance  with 
the  special  law  of  purity  which  they  observe.  On  this  ac- 
count they  are  excluded  from  the  common  court  of  the 
temple  but  themselves  offer  their  sacrifices.  Yet  their  course 
of  life  is  far  better  than  that  of  other  men  and  they  devote 
themselves  wholly  to  agriculture. 

The  Essenes  seem  to  have  a  greater  affection  for  each  other 

than  do  the  other  sects.     They  reject  pleasure  as  an  evil,  but 

regard  self-restraint  and  the  conquest  of  passions  as  a  virtue. 

They  despise  marriage  and  choose  out  other  people's  children, 

while  they  are  impressionable  and  teachable,  and  they  regard 

them  as  their  own  kindred,  and  conform  them  to  their  own 

customs.    They  do  not  absolutely  repudiate  marriage.    There 

is  also  another  order  of  Essenes,  who  agree  with  the  rest  in 

regard  to  their  way  of  living,  customs  and  laws,  but  differ 

from  them  in  regard  to  marriage,  for  they  think  that  by  not 

marrying  they  will  cut  off  the  most  important  element  in 

human  life,  which  is  the  succession  of  mankind. 

7.  These  men  are  despisers  of  riches  and  are  wonderfully 

Iharfng  commuuistic  among  themselves.     No  one  is  to  be  found 

of  prop-  among  them  who  has  more  than  the  others,  for  it  is  a  law 

l^*)       among  them  that  those  who  join  their  sect  must  share  with 

248 


THE  PHARISEES,  SADDUCEES,  AND  ESSENES 

them  what  they  have,  so  that  among  them  all  there  is  no 
evidence  of  poverty  or  excess  of  riches,  but  everyone's  pos- 
sessions are  shared  in  common,  so  there  is,  as  it  were,  but 
one  property  among  all  the  brothers.  They  also  have  di- 
rectors appointed  by  vote  to  manage  their  common  affairs. 
These  have  no  other  interest,  but  each  devotes  himself  to 
the  needs  of  all.  They  possess  no  one  city,  but  many  of 
them  dwell  in  every  city,  and  if  any  of  their  sect  come  from 
other  places,  what  they  have  lies  open  for  them,  just  as  if  it 
were  their  own.  They  do  not  change  garments  or  sandals 
until  they  first  are  entirely  torn  to  pieces  or  worn  out  by 
time.  Nor  do  they  either  buy  or  sell  anything  to  each  other, 
but  every  one  of  them  gives  to  him  who  wants  it  and  receives 
from  him  again  in  return  for  it  what  he  wants;  and  even 
though  no  return  is  made,  they  are  free  to  take  what  they 
want  from  whom  they  wish. 

And  their  piety  toward  God  is  very  extraordinary ;  for  be-  9. 
fore  sunrise  they  speak  not  a  word  about  profane  matters, 
but  offer  up  certain  inherited  prayers  as  if  they  made  a  sup- 
plication to  it  for  its  rising.  After  this  everyone  is  sent  away  w 
by  their  directors  to  engage  in  some  of  those  arts  in  which 
they  are  skilled,  and  at  which  they  labor  with  great  diligence 
until  the  fifth  hour ;  after  which  they  assemble  again  in  one 
place.  And  when  they  have  clad  themselves  in  linen  cover- 
ings, they  bathe  their  bodies  in  cold  water.  After  this  puri- 
fication is  over  they  meet  together  in  an  apartment  of  their 
own  in  which  none  of  another  sect  is  permitted  to  enter. 
Then  they  go  ceremonially  pure  into  the  dining  room,  as  if 
into  a  temple.  And  when  they  have  quietly  sat  down,  the 
baker  lays  loaves  in  order  for  them,  and  a  cook  also  brings 
a  single  plate  of  one  kind  of  food  and  sets  it  before  each 
of  them.  And  a  priest  offers  a  prayer  before  eating.  It  is 
unlawful  for  any  one  to  taste  the  food  before  the  prayer. 
When  he  has  dined  he  offers  prayer  again.  When  they  begin 
and  when  they  end  they  praise  God  as  the  giver  of  the  neces- 
sities of  life.  After  this  they  lay  aside  their  garments  as 
though  they  were  sacred,  and  devote  themselves  to  their 
labor  again  until  evening.  Then  they  return  home  to  dine 
in  the  same  manner  and  if  any  strangers  be  there  they  sit 
down  with  them.    There  is  never  any  clamor  or  disturbance 

249 


Their 

manner 
of  liv- 
ing 


THE  PHARISEES,  SADDUCEES,  AND  ESSENES 

to  pollute  their  household,  but  they  give  everyone  permission 
to  speak  in  turn.  The  silence  of  the  inmates  appears  to  out- 
siders like  some  awful  mystery. 

10.  They  do  nothing  except  in  accordance  with  the  injunctions 
h^lj'"  of  their  directors.  Only  these  two  things  are  done  among 
moral  them  as  each  wishes,  namely,  they  assist  the  needy  and  show 
IrdS  mercy;  but  they  cannot  assist  their  kindred  without  the 
p^fj..  permission  of  their  directors.  They  dispense  their  anger 
ticai  justly  and  restrain  their  passion.  They  are  eminent  for 
edg^  '  fidelity  and  are  the  advocates  of  peace.  Also  whatever  they 
^°^         say  is  mightier  than  an  oath,  but  swearing  is  avoided  by 

them,  and  they  regard  it  worse  than  perjury,  for  they  say 
that  he  who  cannot  be  believed  without  swearing  by  God  is 
already  condemned.  They  also  devote,  great  attention  to 
the  study  of  the  works  of  the  ancients  and  select  from  them 
those  things  that  are  profitable  for  soul  and  body.  Also  they 
seek  out  such  roots  as  may  be  effective  for  the  cure  of  their 
diseases  and  inquire  into  the  properties  of  stones. 

11.  To  one  who  desires  to  enter  their  sect,  admission  is  not 
tionf  of  iniiDiediately  granted ;  but  he  is  prescribed  the  same  method 
admis-  of  living  as  they  use  for  a  year  during  which  he  is  still  ex- 
theV**  eluded,  and  they  give  him  a  small  hatchet,  and  girdle  and 
|f5*       the  white  garment.     And  when  during  that  time  he  has 

given  evidence  of  self-control,  he  approaches  nearer  to  their 
way  of  living  and  is  allowed  to  share  the  waters  of  purifica- 
tion. However,  he  is  not  even  now  allowed  to  live  with  them, 
for  after  this  demonstration  of  his  fortitude,  his  character  is 
tried  two  years  more,  and  if  he  appears  to  be  worthy,  they 
then  admit  him  into  the  society.  But  before  he  is  allowed 
to  touch  their  common  food,  he  is  obliged  to  swear  to  them 
awful  oaths  that  in  the  first  place  he  will  show  piety  toward 
God  and  then  that  he  will  observe  justice  toward  men,  and 
that  he  will  do  no  harm  to  any  one  either  voluntarily  or  at  the 
command  of  others,  and  that  he  will  always  hate  the  wicked, 
and  help  the  righteous,  and  that  he  will  show  fidelity  to  aU 
men  and  especially  to  those  in  authority,  that  he  will  be  a 
lover  of  truth  and  denounce  those  who  tell  lies,  and  that 
he  will  keep  his  hands  clean  from  theft,  and  his  soul  from 
unlawful  gain.  Moreover  he  swears  to  communicate  their 
doctrines  to  no  one  otherwise  than  he  received  them  himself, 

250 


Their 
legal 


ards 


THE  JEWISH  PARTIES 

and  that  he  will  abstain  from  robbery,  and  that  he  will  faith- 
fully preserve  the  books  of  their  sect  and  the  names  of  the 
angels. 

Those  who  are  caught  in  any  heinous  sins  they  cast  out  of  12. 
their  society;  and  he  who  is  thus  expelled  often  dies  miser- 
ably. And  in  the  judgments  they  pronounce  they  are  most  f[''^J^- 
exacting  and  just,  nor  do  they  pass  sentence  by  the  votes  of  stand- 
a  court  having  less  than  one  hundred  members,  and  what  is 
determined  by  them  is  unalterable.  What  they  most  of  all 
honor,  after  God  himself,  is  the  name  of  their  legislator 
[Moses],  whom,  if  any  one  blasphemes,  he  is  punished  by 
death.  They  also  think  it  a  good  thing  to  obey  their  elders 
and  the  majority.  They  are  stricter  than  any  others  of  the 
Jews  in  resting  from  their  labors  on  the  seventh  day,  for 
they  not  only  prepare  their  food  the  day  before,  that  they 
may  not  be  obliged  to  kindle  a  fire  on  that  day,  but  they  wiU 
not  venture  to  move  any  vessel  out  of  its  place. 

They  are  also  long-lived,  insomuch  that  most  of  them  live  13. 
over  a  hundred  years  because  of  the  simplicity  of  their  diet  gevfty 
and  as  a  result  of  their  regular  course  of  life.     They  despise  f^f^^^ 
the  miseries  of  life  and  are  above  pain  because  of  their  noble  immor- 
thoughts.     And  as  for  death,  if  it  come  with  glory,  they  re-  ]fobX 
gard  it  as  better  than  immortality.   They  think  also,  like  the  '"') 
Greeks,  that  the  good  have  their  habitation  beyond  the  ocean 
in  a  region  that  is  never  oppressed  by  storms  of  rain  or  of 
snow,  or  with  heat,  and  that  this  place  is  refreshed  by  the 
gentle  breath  of  the  west  wind  that  is  continually  blowing 
from  the  ocean ;  while  they  allot  to  the  bad  a  dark  and  cold 
den  which  is  never  free  from  unceasing  punishment. 

There  are  also  those  among  them  who  undertake  to  fore-   14. 
tell  things  to  come  by  reading  the  holy  books,  by  using  several  ^^prl^ 
different  forms  of  purifications  and  by  being  constantly  fa- 
miliar with  discourses  of  the  prophets ;  and  it  is  only  seldom 
that  they  fail  in  their  predictions. 

I.  Influences  that  Gave  Rise  to  the  Jewish  Parties.    The  Macca- 

bean  period  witnessed  the  birth  of  the  great  parties  that  henceforth  dis- 
tinguished Judaism.  They  represented  the  crystallizing  of  the  different 
currents  of  thought  that  were  traceable  in  the  Greek  period  and  even 
earlier.    These  diverse  points  of  view  were  in  part  the  result  of  that 

251 


diet 


THE  PHARISEES,  SADDUCEES,  AND  ESSENES 

democratic  spirit  which  has  always  characterized  Israel's  life.  In  the 
striking  antithesis  between  the  idealists  and  the  legalists  and  the  prac- 
tical men  of  aflPairs  it  is  also  possible  to  detect  the  potent  influence  which 
the  prophets  had  exerted  upon  the  thought  of  their  nation.  In  the  Greek 
period  the  Chronicler  and  certain  of  the  psalmists,  with  their  intense  de- 
votion to  the  temple  and  its  services  to  the  practical  exclusion  of  all 
other  interests,  were  the  forerunners  of  the  later  Pharisees.  Ben  Sira, 
with  his  hearty  appreciation  of  the  good  things  of  life,  with  his  devotion 
to  the  scriptures  of  his  race,  with  his  evident  failure  to  accept  the  new 
doctrine  of  individual  immortality,  and  with  his  great  admiration  for  the 
high  priests,  was  an  earlier  type  of  the  better  class  of  Sadducees.  The 
persecutions  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes  developed  these  parties.  As  has 
already  been  noted,  the  Hasideans  who  followed  Judas  in  the  struggle  to 
restore  the  law  and  the  temple  service  were  the  immediate  predecessors 
of  the  early  Pharisees.  The  word  "  Pharisees  "  means  separatists,  and  is 
used  first  in  the  days  of  Jonathan  (Jos.  Ant.  Ill  5').  In  the  same  con- 
nection Josephus  refers  to  the  Sadducees.  The  name  of  this  second  party 
is  probably  derived,  not  from  the  Hebrew  word  sadik,  meaning  righteous, 
but  from  Zadok  (later  written  Sadok  or  Sadduk),  who  was  placed  by 
Solomon  in  charge  of  the  Jerusalem  temple.  It  was  thus  the  designa- 
tion of  the  aristocratic,  high-priestly  party.  In  the  Persian  and  Greek 
periods  the  high  priests  had  ruled  the  Judean  state  without  opposition. 
It  was  the  rise  of  the  party  of  the  Pharisees  that  apparently  developed 
that  of  the  Sadducees.  This  party  included  the  hereditary  nobles  who 
supported  and  sympathized  with  the  Maccabean  leaders.  The  Essenes 
evidently  represent  a  reaction  against  the  prevailing  moral  corruption. 
In  many  respects  they  were  simply  extreme  Pharisees.  They  were 
zealots  in  religion,  just  as  the  later  party  of  the  Zealots  were  extremists 
in  their  hatred  of  Rome  and  in  the  methods  which  they  were  ready  to 
use  in  order  to  attain  their  ends. 

II.  Character  and  Beliefs  of  the  Pharisees.  Originally  the  Phar- 
isees were  not  a  political  but  a  religious  party.  The  opposition  of  the 
Sadducees  in  time  led  them  to  enter  public  life.  In  politics  they  were 
conserv^atives.  They  had  little  sympathy  with  the  popu'ar  ambition  for 
political  independence,  and  probably  regarded  with  alarm  the  tendency 
toward  national  expansion.  Alliances  with  the  heathen  nations  seemed 
to  them  disloyalty  to  Jehovah.  In  belief  they  were  progressives.  While 
they  stood  squarely  on  the  ancient  law,  they  recognized  the  importance 
of  interpreting  it  so  as  to  meet  the  many  questions  that  rose  in  public 
and  private  life.    To  this  great  and  practically  endless  task  much  oi 

252 


CHARACTER  AND   BELIEFS   OF  THE   PHARISEES 

their  time  was  devoted.  They  thus  recognized  the  fact  that  Israel's  law 
was  still  in  process  of  development.  To  their  later  interpretations  of 
the  law  they  attributed  great  authority.  One  of  their  maxims  was:  "It 
is  a  worse  offence  to  teach  things  contrary  to  the  ordinances  of  the  scribes 
than  to  teach  things  contrary  to  the  written  law."  Naturally  their  at- 
tempt to  anticipate  by  definite  regulations  each  individual  problem  led 
them  to  absurd  extremes  and  in  time  obscured  the  real  intent  of  the 
older  laws,  but  the  spirit  which  actuated  it  was  progressive.  They  also 
did  not  hesitate  to  accept  the  growing  popular  belief  in  angels  and  spir- 
its. Like  the  earlier  prophets,  they  recognized  the  presence  of  Jehovah 
directing  the  life  of  the  nation  and  of  the  individual.  They  accepted  the 
new-born  belief  in  the  immortality  of  the  individual,  clinging,  however, 
to  the  hope  of  a  bodily  resurrection.  They  also  held  to  the  popular 
messianic  hopes  which  became  more  and  more  prominent  during  the 
Maccabean  and  Roman  periods. 

The  Pharisees  were  the  most  democratic  party  in  Judaism.  While 
for  their  own  members  they  insisted  upon  a  most  rigorous  ceremonial 
regime,  they  allowed  the  common  people  to  ally  themselves  with  them 
as  associates.  In  their  acceptance  of  the  popular  hopes  and  in  their  en- 
deavor to  adapt  Israel's  law  to  the  life  of  the  nation  and  thus  establish  a 
basis  for  the  realization  of  Israel's  hopes  they  appealed  to  the  masses  and 
exerted  over  them  a  powerful  influence.  Josephus  asserts  that  so  great 
was  the  influence  of  the  Pharisees  with  the  people  that  the  Sadducees,  in 
order  to  carry  through  their  policies,  were  obliged,  nominally,  at  least,  to 
adopt  the  platform  of  their  rivals.  The  Pharisees  were  also  zealous  in 
teaching  the  people  and  thus  kept  in  close  touch  with  the  masses.  They, 
therefore,  stood  as  the  true  representatives  of  Judaism.  Their  prin- 
ciples have  survived  and  are  still  the  foundations  of  orthodox  Judaism. 

III.  Character  and  Beliefs  of  the  Sadducees.  The  Sadducees 
were  few  in  numbers  compared  with  the  Pharisees.  They  represented, 
on  the  one  side,  the  old  priestly  aristocracy,  and  on  the  other  the  new 
nobility  that  rallied  about  the  Maccabean  leaders.  They  depended  for 
their  authority  upon  their  wealth,  their  inherited  prestige,  and  the  sup- 
port of  the  throne.  They  were  in  reality  a  political  rather  than  a  relig- 
ious party.  In  politics  they  were  progressives  and  opportunists.  Any 
policy  that  promised  to  further  their  individual  or  class  interests  was 
acceptable  to  them.  As  is  usually  the  case  with  parties  that  represent 
wealth  and  hereditary  power,  they  were  conservatives  in  belief.  They 
stood  squarely  on  the  earlier  scriptures  of  their  race  and  had  no  sym- 
pathy with  the  later  Pharisaic  interpretations  and  doctrines.    \Miether 

253 


THE  PHARISEES,  SADDUCEES,  AND  ESSENES 

or  not,  as  Josephus  asserts,  they  entirely  rejected  fate,  that  Is,  the  provi- 
dential direction  of  human  affairs,  is  not  clear.  Probably  in  this  belief 
they  did  not  depart  from  the  earlier  teachings  of  priests  and  prophets. 
Their  selfish  and  often  unscrupulous  acts  suggest  a  basis  for  Josephus's 
claim,  even  though  allowance  must  be  made  for  his  hostile  attitude 
toward  them.  While  they  were  conservatives  in  theory,  the  Sadducees 
were  of  all  classes  in  Judaism  most  open  to  Greek  and  heathen  influence, 
for  foreign  alliances  and  Hellenic  culture  offered  opportunities  for  ad- 
vancement and  power. 

IV.  Character  and  Beliefs  of  the  Essenes.  Less  important  but 
even  more  interesting  are  the  Essenes.  They  were  a  sect,  or  monastic 
order,  rather  than  a  political  or  religious  party.  Josephus,  who  asserts 
that  for  a  time  he  was  associated  with  them,  has  given  a  full  account  of 
their  peculiar  customs.  They  evidently  represented  a  strong  reaction 
against  the  prevailing  corruption  and  a  return  to  the  simple  life.  Their 
spirit  of  humility,  fraternity,  and  practical  charity  are  in  marked  con- 
trast to  the  aims  of  the  Sadducees  and  the  later  Maccabean  rulers.  In 
their  beliefs  they  were  idealists.  Their  invocation  of  the  sun,  their  ex- 
treme emphasis  on  ceremonial  cleanliness,  their  tendency  toward  celibacy, 
and  their  distinction  between  soul  and  body,  all  suggest  the  indirect  if 
not  the  direct  influence  of  the  Pythagorean  type  of  philosophy.  If  the 
Essenes  represented  simply  an  extreme  type  of  Pharisaism,  the  peculiar 
form  of  its  development  was  undoubtedly  due  to  the  Greek  atmosphere 
amidst  which  it  flourished.  The  Essenes  do  not  appear  to  have  had  any 
direct  influence  in  the  politics  of  their  day.  They  were  a  current  apart 
from  the  main  stream  of  Judaism,  and  yet  they  could  not  fail  to  exert  an 
indirect  influence.  Many  of  their  ideals  and  doctrines  were  closely  sim- 
ilar to  the  teachings  of  John  the  Baptist  and  Jesus.  Yet  there  is  a  funda- 
mental difference  between  Essenism  and  primitive  Christianity,  for  one 
sought  to  attain  perfection  apart  from  life  and  the  other  in  closest  contact 
with  the  currents  of  human  thought  and  activity.  While  according  to 
Josephus  the  party  of  the  Essenes  at  one  time  numbered  four  thousand, 
like  all  ascetic  movements  it  soon  disappeared  or  else  was  deflected  into 
that  greater  stream  of  monasticism  which  rose  in  the  early  Christian 
centuries. 


254 


THE  LIFE  AND  FAITH  OF    FHE  JEWS 


§  CXV.     THE  LIFE  AND  FAITH  OF  THE  JEWS  OF  THE 
DISPERSION 

The  Jews  obtained  honor  from  the  kings  of  Asia  when  they  i.  Prfv- 
became  their  auxiliaries;    for  Seleucus  Nicator  made  them  In  Ada 
citizens  of  those  cities  which  he  built  in  Asia  and  in  lower  ^^2°^ 
Syria,  and  in  Antioch,  the  metropolis,  and  gave  them  priv-  Syria 
ileges  equal  to  those  of  the  Macedonians  and  the  Greeks  who  Ant!' 
were  its  inhabitants.  ^ii, 

For  the  Jewish  race  is  widely  dispersed  among  the  in-  2.  in 
habitants  of  all  the  world ;  and  especially  was  it  intermin-  ^'J^*'- 
gled  with  the  population  of  Syria,  because  of  the  nearness  (Jew. 
of  that  country.     Above  all,  in  Antioch,  because  of  the  size  yi^' 
of  the  city,  it  had  great  numbers.     There  the  kings  who  fol-  ^'"^ 
lowed  Antiochus  gave  the  Jews  a  place  where  they  might 
live  in  the  most  undisturbed  security;   for  although  Anti- 
ochus, who  was  called  Epiphanes,  laid  waste  Jerusalem  and 
plundered  the  temple,  the  kings  who  succeeded  him  re- 
stored all  the  gifts  of  brass  that  had  been  made  to  the  Jews 
of  Antioch,  and  dedicated  them  to  their  synagogue. 

The  succeeding  kings  also  treated  them  in  the  same  way,  3. 
so  that  they  became  very  numerous,  and  adorned  their  temple  fiy°^ng 
with  ornaments  and  at  great  expense  with  those  things  which  activity 
had  been  given  them.     They  also  continued  to  attract  a  great  jews^ 
many  of  the  Greeks  to  their  services,  making  them  in  a  sense  ^""^ 
part  of  themselves. 

Now  Onias,  the  son  of  Simon,  one  of  the  Jewish  high  4.  The 
priests,  fled  from  Antiochus  [Epiphanes]  the  king  of  Syria, 
when  he  made  war  with  the  Jews,  and  came  to  Alexandria. 
And  after  Ptolemy  [Philometor]  received  him  very  kindly  on 
account  of  his  hatred  to  Antiochus,  Onias  assured  him  that  ff(^XL 
if  he  would  comply  with  his  proposal,  he  would  bring  all  the 
Jews  to  his  assistance.  Now  when  the  king  agreed  to  do 
whatever  he  was  able,  Onias  desired  him  to  give  him  per- 
mission to  build  a  temple  somewhere  in  Egypt  and  to  worship 
God  according  to  the  customs  of  his  own  nation.  So  Ptolemy 
complied  with  his  proposals  and  gave  them  a  place  about 
twenty  miles  distant  from  Memphis.  That  province  was 
"ailed  the  province  of  Heliopolis.     There  Onias  built  a  for- 

255 


Jewish 
temple 
in 
north- 


THE  LIFE  AND  FAITH  OF  THE  JEWS 

tress  and  a  temple  like  that  at  Jerusalem  except  that  it  re- 
sembled a  tower.  He  built  it  of  large  stones  to  the  height 
of  sixty  cubits,  but  he  made  the  structure  of  the  altar  an 
imitation  of  that  in  his  own  country.  In  like  manner  also 
he  adorned  it  with  gifts,  excepting  that  he  did  not  make  a 
candlestick  but  had  a  single  lamp  hammered  out  of  a  beaten 
piece  of  gold,  which  illuminated  the  place  with  its  rays,  and 
which  he  hung  by  a  chain  of  gold.  The  entire  temple  was 
surrounded  by  a  wall  of  burnt  brick,  although  it  had  a  gate- 
way of  stone.  The  king  also  gave  him  a  large  territory  for 
a  revenue  in  money,  that  both  the  priests  might  have  plenti- 
ful provision  for  themselves,  and  that  God  might  have  abun- 
dance of  those  things  which  were  necessary  for  his  worship. 
Now  in  the  days  of  John  Hyrcanus,  not  only  did  the  Jews 
in  Jerusalem  and  Judea  enjoy  prosperity  but  also  those  who 
were  at  Alexandria  in  Egypt  and  Cyprus.  For  Cleopatra  the 
queen  was  at  variance  with  her  son  Ptolemy,  who  is  called 
Lathyrus,  and  appointed  as  her  generals  Chelcias  and  Ana- 
nias, the  son  of  that  Onias  who  built  the  temple  in  the  prov- 
ince of  Heliopolis  similar  to  that  of  Jerusalem.  Cleopatra 
intrusted  these  men  with  her  army  and  did  nothing  without 
their  advice.  Strabo  of  Cappadocia  also  attests  that  only 
those  who  were  called  Onias's  party,  being  Jews,  continued 
faithful  to  Cleopatra  because  their  countrymen,  Chelcias  and 
Ananias,  were  in  highest  favor  with  the  queen. 

Wisdom  is  brilliant  and  fades  not  away, 

And  she  is  easily  seen  by  those  who  love  her, 

And  found  by  those  who  seek  her. 

She  anticipates  those  who  desire  her,  making  herself  first 

known. 
He  who  eagerly  seeks  her  shall  have  no  toil, 
For  he  shall  find  her  sitting  at  his  gates. 
For  thinking  upon  her  brings  perfect  wisdom, 
And  he  who  lies  awake  for  her  sake  shall  quickly  be 

free  from  care. 
For  she  herself  goes  about  seeking  those  who  are  worthy 

of  her. 
And  in  their  paths  she  graciously  appears  to  them, 
And  in  every  purpose  she  meets  them. 

256  ^ 


THE  LIFE  AND  FAITH  OF  THE  JEWS 

For  she  is  breath  of  the  power  of  God,  7.  Nat 

And  a  clear  eflOluence  of  the  glory  of  the  Almighty;        and 
Therefore  nothing  defiled  can  find  entrance  into  her.       effects 
For  she  is  a  reflection  of  everlasting  light,  wisdom 

And  a  spotless  mirror  of  the  working  of  God,  gu '^ 

And  an  image  of  his  goodness. 
And  though  she  is  but  one,  she  has  power  to  do  all 

things ; 
And  remaining  the  same  renews  all  things. 
And  from  generation  to  generation  passing  into  holy 

souls. 
She  makes  them  friends  of  God  and  prophets. 
For  God  loves  nothing  except  him  who  dwells  with 

wisdom. 
For  she  is  fairer  than  the  sun. 
And  surpasses  all  the  order  of  the  stars; 
Compared  with  light,  she  is  found  to  be  superior  to  it. 
For  night  succeeds  the  light  of  day. 
But  evil  does  not  prevail  against  wisdom. 
But  she   reaches  from  one  end  of  the  world  to  the 

other. 
And  she  directs  all  things  graciously. 
The  fruits  of  her  labors  are  virtues; 
For  she  teaches  moderation  and  good  sense, 
Justice  and  fortitude, 
And  nothing  in  life  is  more  profitable  for  men  than 

these. 

Love  righteousness,  0  rulers  of  the  earth,  s.  Pu- 

Think  of  the  Lord  with  sincerity,  "hMght 

And  seek  him  in  singleness  of  heart.  and^ 

For  he  is  found  by  those  who  do  not  tempt  him,  neces- 

And  manifests  himself  to  those  who  do  not  distrust  I'Jfain" 

him.  divine 

For  perverse  thoughts  separate  from  Gcd,  (u-»)° 

And  his  power,  when  it  is  tried,  convicts  the  foolish ; 
For  wisdom  will  not  enter  into  a  soul  that  devises  evil. 
Nor  dwell  in  a  body  that  is  pledged  to  sin. 
'^ir  a  holy  spirit  which  disciplines  will  flee  deceit, 
Ana  will  start  away  from  senseless  thoughts, 
257 


THE  LIFE  AND  FAITH  OF  THE  JEWS  ' 

And  will  be  frightened  away  when  unrighteousness 

comes  in. 
For  wisdom  is  a  spirit  that  loves  man, 
And  she  will  not  absolve  a  blasphemer  for  his  words, 
Because  God  is  a  witness  of  his  innermost  feelings, 
And  a  true  overseer  of  his  heart. 
And  a  hearer  of  his  tongue. 
For  the  spirit  of  the  Lord  hath  filled  the  world, 
And  that  which  holdeth  all  things  together  knoweth 

every  voice. 
Therefore  no  one  who  speaks  unrighteous  things  can  be 

hid, 
Nor  will  justice,  when  it  convicts,  pass  him  by. 

Do  not  court  death  by  leading  an  erring  life. 

And  do  not  by  the  deeds  of  your  hands  draw  destruction 

upon  yourselves. 
For  God  did  not  make  death, 
And  he  hath  no  pleasure  when  the  living  perish; 
For  he  created  all  things  that  they  might  exist, 
And  the  created  things  of  the  world  are  not  baneful. 
And  there  is  no  destructive  poison  in  them, 
Nor  has  Hades  dominion  on  earth, 
For  righteousness  is  immortal. 

For  God  created  man  for  incorruption, 

And  made  him  an  image  of  his  own  peculiar  nature ; 

But  through  the  envy  of  the  devil  death  entered  into 

the  world, 
And  they  who  belong  to  him  experience  it. 
But  the  souls  of  the  righteous  are  in  the  hand  of  God; 
And  no  torment  can  touch  them. 

But  the  righteous  live  forever, 
And  in  the  Lord  is  their  reward. 
And  the  care  for  them  with  the  Most  High. 
Therefore  they  shall  receive  the  glorious  kingdom. 
And  the  diadem  of  beauty  from  the  Lord's  hand; 
Because  he  will  cover  them  with  his  right  hand, 
And  with  his  arm  he  will  shield  them. 
258 


THE  JEWS  IN  ANTIOCH  AND  ASIA  MINOR 

For  thou,  0  Lord,  lovest  all  things  that  are,  12.  ^ 

And  thou  dost  not  abhor  any  of  the  things  which  thou  hast  u>%^' 

made,  f^d 

For  thou  wouldest  never  have  formed  anything  that  thou  carefoi 

didst  hate.  fJ^S_ 

And  how  would  anything  have  endured,  if  thou  didst  not  '2') 

wish  it? 
Or  how  could  that  which  was  not  called  into  being  by  thee 

have  been  preserved? 
But  thou  sparest  all  things,  because  they  are  thine, 
O  Sovereign  Lord,  thou  lover  of  men's  lives ! 
For  thine  incorruptible  spirit  is  in  all  things. 
Therefore  thou  convictest  the  fallen  little  by  little. 
And,  reminding  them  of  the  things  in  which  they  sin,  thou 

dost  warn  them. 
That  freed  from  wickedness,  they  may  believe  on  thee,  0  Lord. 

But  thou,  our  God,  art  gracious  and  true,  13.  , 

Long  suffering,  and  in  mercy  directing  all  things.  reiTtiln 

For  even  if  we  sin,  we  are  thine,  since  we  know  thy  might.    ^°i^°^ 
But  we  shall  not  sin,  knowing  that  we  have  been  counted  as 

thine ; 
For  to  know  thee  is  perfect  righteousness. 
And  to  know  thy  might  is  the  root  of  immortality. 

I.  Conditions  of  the  Jews  in  Antioch  and  Asia  Minor.  Seleucus 
Nicanor,  who  in  311  B.C.  founded  the  city  of  Antioch,  like  Alexander, 
granted  many  privileges  to  the  Jewish  colonies  whom  he  thus  sought  to 
attract  hither.  They  not  only  possessed  the  rights  of  citizenship,  but 
lived  in  their  separate  quarter.  Their  synagogue  was  one  of  the  archi- 
tectural glories  of  the  city.  There  they  engaged  in  trade  and  undoubt- 
edly grew  rich,  taking  on  largely  the  complexion  of  that  opulent  Hellenic 
city.  Later  the  Jewish  colony  was  enlarged  by  the  apostates  who  fled 
from  Judea  when  the  Maccabean  rulers  gained  the  ascendancy.  The 
corrupt  and  materialistic  atmosphere  of  Antioch  doubtless  explains  why 
its  Jewish  citizens  apparently  contributed  little  to  the  development  of  the 
thought  and  faith  of  later  Judaism.  Similar  colonies  were  found  through- 
out the  great  commercial  cities  of  Asia  Minor.  In  many  of  these  cities — 
for  example,  Tarsus — they  seem  to  have  enjoyed  the  same  privileges  as 
those  at  Antioch. 

259 


THE  LIFE  AND  FAITH  OF  THE   JEWS- 

II.  The  Jews  in  Egypt.  The  chief  intellectual  and  religious  centre 
of  the  Jews  of  the  dispersion,  however,  was  in  Alexandria.  It  is  prob- 
able that  fully  a  million  Jews  were  to  be  found  in  Egypt  during  the  latter 
part  of  the  Maccabean  period.  Industry  and  commerce  had  made  many 
of  them  extremely  wealthy  and  had  given  them  the  leisure  to  study  not 
only  their  own  scriptures  but  also  the  literature  of  the  Greeks.  The  pre- 
vailingly friendly  way  in  which  the  Ptolemaic  rulers  treated  the  Jews 
naturally  led  them  to  take  a  more  favorable  attitude  toward  Greek  cult- 
ure. Alexandria  itself  was  the  scene  of  an  intense  intellectual  activity. 
Attracted  by  the  munificence  of  the  Ptolemies  and  by  the  opportunities 
offered  by  its  great  library,  many  of  the  most  famous  Greek  philosophers 
and  rhetoricians  of  the  age  found  their  home  in  the  Egyptian  capital. 
Public  lectures,  open  discussions,  and  voluminous  literature  were  only 
a  few  of  the  many  forms  in  which  this  intellectual  life  was  expressed. 
Hence  it  was  at  Alexandria  that  Hebrew  and  Greek  thought  met  on  the 
highest  plane  and  mingled  most  closely. 

HI.  The  Jewish  Temple  at  Leontopolis.  After  the  murder  of  his 
father  Onias  III  near  Antioch,  whither  he  had  fled  from  the  persecutions 
of  Antiochus  Epiphanes,  Onias  IV  sought  refuge  in  Egypt.  Here,  as  the 
legitimate  head  of  the  Jewish  high-priesthood,  he  was  favorably  received 
by  Ptolemy  and  granted  territory  in  the  Nile  Delta  to  the  north  of  Mem- 
phis in  which  to  rear  a  temple  to  Jehovah.  In  the  light  of  recent  dis- 
coveries at  Elephantine  it  is  evident  that  this  step  was  not  without  prece- 
dent (§  XCI^").  Ptolemy's  object  was  to  please  his  Jewish  subjects  and 
to  attract  others  to  the  land  of  the  Nile.  Josephus's  statement  in  The 
Jewish  War,  VII,  10*  favors  the  conclusion  that  the  temple  was  built 
two  hundred  and  forty-three  years  (not  343)  before  its  final  destruction 
in  73  A.D.,  that  is,  in  170  B.C.  In  any  case  it  was  probably  built  be- 
tween 170  and  160  B.C.,  at  the  time  when  the  persecutions  of  Antiochus 
Epiphanes  made  pilgrimages  to  the  Jerusalem  temple  impossible,  and 
threatened  its  continued  existence.  The  plan  of  the  Leontopolis  tem- 
ple indicates  that  it  was  not  intended  to  be  a  rival  to  the  Jerusalem 
sanctuary,  but  rather  a  common  place  of  meeting  for  the  Egyptian 
Jews  and  of  defence  in  case  of  attack.  It  never  seriously  rivalled  the 
Jerusalem  sanctuary,  although  in  later  days  it  was  viewed  with  jealousy 
by  the  Jews  of  Palestine. 

IV.  Translation  of  the  Hebrew  Scriptures  into  Greek.  Far  more 
significant  than  the  building  of  the  Leontopolis  temple  was  the  trans- 
lation of  the  Hebrew  Scriptures  into  Greek.  The  tradition  preserved 
by  Josephus  that  the  translation  was  made  in  seventy-two  days  by 

260 


TRANSLATION  OF  THE  HEBREW  SCRIPTURES 

seventy-two  scholars,  sent  from  Jerusalem  by  Eleazar  the  high  priest  at 
the  request  of  Ptolemy,  is  clearly  unhistorical.  The  impossibility  of 
completing  so  vast  a  task  in  this  limited  time  is  obvious.  Moreover,  the 
character  of  the  translation  indicates  that  it  was  the  work  not  of  Pales- 
tinian but  of  Alexandrian  Jews  familiar  with  the  peculiar  Greek  of 
Egypt  and  the  lands  of  the  dispersion.  It  was  also  the  work  not  of  one 
but  of  many  different  groups  of  translators,  as  is  shown  by  the  variant 
synonyms  employed  in  different  books  to  translate  the  same  Hebrew 
words  and  idioms.  In  the  case  of  several  books  the  work  of  two  or  more 
distinct  translators  is  readily  recognized.  The  quality  of  the  translation 
also  varies  greatly  in  different  books.  It  is  probable  that  the  one  his- 
torical fact  underlying  the  tradition  is  that  the  work  of  translation  was 
begun  in  the  days  of  Ptolemy  Philadelphus,  who  may  have  encouraged 
his  Jewish  subjects  in  their  undertaking.  From  the  character  of  the 
translations  and  the  nature  of  the  situation  it  is  probable  that  the  first 
books  to  be  translated  were  certain  historical  writings,  as  Samuel-Kings 
and  the  books  of  the  Law.  The  remaining  books  were  probably  trans- 
lated by  the  end  of  the  succeeding  century  (between  250  and  150  B.C.), 
for  the  grandson  of  Ben  Sira  implies  in  his  prologue  that  he  was  ac- 
quainted with  the  Law,  the  Prophets,  and  the  other  writings  in  their 
Greek  version. 

The  primary  aim  of  this  Greek  translation  was  to  put  the  Hebrew 
scriptures  themselves  into  the  hands  of  their  Greek  persecutors  as  the 
best  possible  answer  to  their  false  and  malicious  charges.  Evidence  of 
this  apologetic  purpose  is  found  in  the  fact  that  glaring  inconsistencies 
and  expressions,  where  Jehovah  is  described  in  the  likeness  of  a  human 
being,  were  usually  left  out.  Where  the  Hebrew  text  was  corrupt  the 
translators  restored  or  else  freely  paraphrased  what  they  thought  was 
the  original  meaning.  In  time,  however,  the  translation  gained  a  new 
importance,  for  the  Jews  of  Egypt  soon  began  to  forget  the  language  of 
their  fathers  and  so  became  increasingly  dependent  for  a  knowledge  of 
their  scriptures  upon  the  Greek  translation.  In  the  end  it  almost  com- 
pletely superseded  the  original  Hebrew  version  not  only  in  the  lands  of 
the  dispersion,  but  even  in  Palestine  itself.  A  large  proportion  of  the 
quotations  from  the  Old  Testament  in  the  New  are  from  the  Greek 
rather  than  the  Hebrew  text.  Although  it  is  only  a  translation,  the 
Greek  version,  or  Septuagint  (the  Version  of  the  Seventy),  as  it  is  popu- 
larly known,  still  possesses  a  great  value  for  the  modern  translator,  inas- 
much as  it  is  based  upon  Hebrew  texts  centuries  older  than  any  which 
now  exists.    At  many  points,  especially  in  the  historical  prophetic  books 

261 


THE  LIFE  AND  FAITH  OF  THE   JEWS 

it  makes  possible  the  restoration  of  the  original  reading  where  the  He- 
brew has  become  corrupt  in  the  long  process  of  transmission. 

Y.  Apologetic  Jewish  Writings.  During  the  centuries  immediately 
preceding  the  Christian  era  the  Jews  of  the  dispersion,  and  especially  of 
Egj'pt,  were  the  object  of  constant  attack.  Manetho,  an  Egyptian  priest, 
wrote  a  history  purporting  to  give  the  origin  and  the  early  experiences  of 
the  Jews.  Portions  of  this  have  been  preserved  and  reveal  the  bitter 
and  unjust  spirit  with  which  this  r?c^  was  regarded  by  the  Greek  and 
Egyptian  scholars  of  the  day.  Tc  defend  themselves  from  these  attacks 
the  Jews  not  only  translated  their  scriptures,  but  employed  many  differ- 
ent types  of  writing.  A  certi^in  Jew  by  the  name  of  Demetrius  about 
215  B.C.  wrote  a  commendatory  history  of  the  Jewish  kings.  Aristo- 
bulus,  the  teacher  of  Ptolemy  Philometor,  wTOte  an  "Explanation  of  the 
Mosaic  Laws,"  in  which  he  anticipated,  in  many  ways,  the  modern  in- 
terpretation of  the  early  traditions  found  in  the  opening  books  of  the 
Old  Testament.  Like  all  Alexandrian  scholars,  however,  he  overshot 
the  mark  under  the  influence  of  the  allegorical  or  symbolic  type  of  inter- 
pretation. Other  Jewish  writers  appealed  to  the  older  Greek  historians 
and  poets.  Adopting  the  unprincipled  methods  of  their  persecutors, 
they  expanded  the  original  writings  of  such  historians  as  Hecatseus, 
who  had  spoken  in  a  commendatory  way  of  the  Jews.  They  even  went 
so  far  as  to  insert  long  passages  into  the  writings  of  the  famous  Greek 
poets,  such  as  Orpheus,  Hesiod,  .Eschylus,  Sophocles,  and  Menander, 
so  as  to  transform  them  into  ardent  champions  of  the  persecuted  race. 
The  culmination  of  this  illegitimate  form  of  defence  was  to  insert  in  the 
famous  Sibylline  Books  (III)  a  long  passage  describing  the  glories  of  the 
Jewish  race  and  voicing  the  hopes  with  which  they  regarded  the  future. 
It  was  in  this  atmosphere  and  under  the  influence  of  these  methods  that 
the  anti-Semitic  spirit  w^as  born  in  ancient  Alexandria.  Thence  it  was 
transmitted,  as  a  malign  heritage,  to  the  Christian  church. 

VI.  The  Wisdom  of  Solomon.  The  noblest  literary  product  of  the 
Jews  of  the  dispersion  was  the  apocryphal  book  kno^oi  as  the  Wisdom 
of  Solomon.  It  was  so  called  because  the  author  assumed  the  point  of 
\iew  of  Solomon.  In  so  doing  he  did  not  intend  to  deceive  his  contem- 
poraries, but  rather  followed  the  common  tendency  of  his  day.  Al- 
though the  book  has  many  characteristic  Hebrew  idioms,  w^hich  are  due 
to  its  Jewish  authorship,  it  was  without  doubt  originally  ■WTitten  in 
Greek.  Its  author  was  evidently  acquainted  with  the  writings  of  many 
of  the  Greek  poets  and  philosophers.  He  accepted  Plato's  doctrine 
•f  the  pre-existenct.  of  the  soul  (8'^-  ^''),  of  the  limitations  of  the  body 

262 


THE  WISDOM  OF  SOLOMON 

(9'^),  and  of  the  creation  of  the  world  out  of  formless  matter  (11").  He 
was  especially  influenced  by  the  beliefs  of  the  Epicureans  and  Stoics. 
He  was  acquainted  with  Hellenic  art,  astronomy,  and  science  (7""^") 
and  throughout  shows  the  influence  of  Greek  methods  of  thinking.  His 
rejection  of  the  teachings  of  the  book  of  Ecclesiastes,  his  wide  learning 
and  his  conception  of  immortality  indicate  that  he  lived  some  time  after 
the  beginning  of  the  Maccabean  struggle.  His  reference  in  3'-^  is  proba- 
bly to  the  persecutions  through  which  the  Jews  of  Egypt  passed  during 
the  reign  of  Ptolemy  Psycon  (140-117  B.C.).  On  the  other  hand  the 
book  clearly  antedates  the  writings  of  the  Jewish  philosopher  Philo, 
who  lived  during  the  latter  part  of  the  first  century  b.c.  The  Wisdom  of 
Solomon,  therefore,  may  be  dated  somewhere  between  100  and  50  B.C. 
Vn.  Its  Important  Teachings.  The  author  of  the  Wisdom  of 
Solomon  aimed,  first,  to  commend  Israel's  faith  to  the  heathen  by 
showing  that  it  was  in  substantial  accord  with  the  noblest  doctrines  of 
the  Greek  philosophers,  and  second,  to  furnish  the  Jews  of  the  disper- 
sion, who  were  conversant  with  Hellenic  thought  and  yet  trained  in  the 
religion  of  their  race,  a  working  basis  for  their  thought  and  practice. 
From  the  first  it  appears  to  have  been  highly  esteemed  by  the  Jews  out- 
side Palestine,  although  it  never  found  a  place  in  the  Palestinian  canon. 
Like  most  wisdom  books,  it  describes  at  length  the  beauty  and  value  of 
wisdom.  The  figure  of  Proverbs  8  and  9  is  still  further  developed  under 
the  influence  of  the  Greek  tendency  to  personify  abstract  qualities.  In 
the  mind  of  the  author,  however,  wisdom  is  simply  an  attribute  of  the 
Deity  which  he  shares  in  common  with  men.  The  book  is  unique  in  two 
respects:  (1)  it  contains  the  earliest  references  in  Jewish  literature  to 
a  personal  devil  and  identifies  him  with  the  serpent  that  tempted  the 
woman  in  the  garden  (2^^,  cf.  Gen.  3)  Elsewhere,  however,  the  author 
traces  sin  and  ev\\  to  men's  voluntary  acts  {e.  g.,  1").  (2)  It  teaches  the 
immortality  of  righteousness  and  hence,  by  implication,  the  immortality 
of  the  individual.  "God  created  man  for  incorruption,"  and  "the  souls 
of  the  righteous  are  in  his  hand."  The  doctrine  here  presented  is  ethi- 
cal and  spiritual  rather  than  the  belief  in  a  bodily  resurrection  already 
formulated  in  the  twelfth  chapter  of  Daniel.  It  also  teaches  that  both 
the  good  and  bad  ^\ill  be  rewarded  according  to  their  deeds.  Its  con- 
ceptions of  God  are  exalted.  He  is  the  incorruptible  spirit  in  all  things, 
just  and  yet  merciful,  the  lover  of  men.  The  book  also  places  side  by 
side  with  the  Jewish  teachings  regarding  men's  duties  to  God  and  their 
fellow-men  the  Greek  virtues  of  moderation,  good  sense,  justice,  and 
courage  or  fortitude.     It  also  teaches  that,  like  God,  each  of  his  children 

263 


DECLINE  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  KINGDOM 

should  be  a  lover  of  men.  Thus  the  book  unites  most  effectively  that 
which  is  best  in  the  thought  of  Judaism  and  Hellenism  and  is  an  earnest 
of  that  still  nobler  union  that  was  later  realized  in  the  thought  and 
teachings  of  Christianity. 

§  CXVI.     THE  DECLINE  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  KINGDOM 

I.Alex-  After  Aristobulus  died,  his  wife  Salome,  who  by  the  Greeks 
j^^f"^  was  called  Alexandra,  released  his  brothers  from  prison  (for 
neus  Aristobulus  had  kept  them  in  confinement),  and  made  Alex- 
king^  ander  Janneus,  who  was  the  oldest,  king, 
^a^'  I  Now  there  was  a  battle  between  him  and  Ptolemy,  who 
4')  '  '  was  called  Lathyrus,  who  had  taken  the  city  of  Asochis. 

2.  His  He  indeed  slew  many  of  his  enemies,  but  the  victory  rather 
qu^ts  hiclined  to  Ptolemy.  But  when  this  Ptolemy  was  pursued 
on  the  by  his  mother,  Cleopatra,  and  retired  into  Egypt,  Alexander 
«me"  besieged  and  took  Gadara  and  Amathus,  which  was  the 
^}f'^  strongest  of  all  the  fortresses  that  were  beyond  the  Jordan, 

and  the  most  valued  of  all  the  possessions  of  Theodorus,  the 
son  of  Zeno,  were  therein.  Thereupon  Theodorus  marched 
suddenly  against  him  and  took  what  belonged  to  himself, 
and  slew  ten  thousand  of  the  Jews.  Alexander,  however, 
recovered  from  this  blow  and  turned  his  force  toward  the 
maritime  districts  and  took  Gaza,  Raphia,  and  Anthedon. 

3.  Sup-  But  when  he  had  enslaved  all  these  cities,  the  Jews  made 
sira  of  ^^  insurrection  against  him  at  a  festival  and  it  looked  as 
a  rebel-  though  he  would  uot  have  been  able  to  escape  the  plot  they 
and  had  laid  for  him,  had  not  his  foreign  auxiliaries  come  to  his 
quests  ^i*^'  ^^  when  he  had  slain  more  than  six  thousand  of  the 
east  of  rebels,  he  invaded  Arabia,  and  when  he  had  conquered  the 
Jordan  Gileadites  and  Moabites,  he  commanded  them  to  pay  him 
^'^         tribute  and  returned  to  Amathus  and  took  the  fortress  and 

demolished  it. 

4.  Cruel  Howcver,  when  he  fought  with  Obedas,  king  of  the  Ara- 
^gres  bians,  who  had  laid  an  ambush  for  him  near  Golan,  he  lost 
of  his  his  entire  army,  which  was  crowded  together  in  a  deep 
jects      valley  and  trampled  to  pieces  by  the  multitude  of  camels. 

And  fleeing  to  Jerusalem  because  of  the  greatness  of  the 
calamity  that  had  overtaken  him,  he  provoked  the  multitude, 
which  had  hated  him  before,  to  make  an  insurrection  against 

264 


(la.b) 


DECLINE  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  KINGDOM 

him.  He  was,  however,  too  strong  for  them  in  the  various 
battles  that  were  fought  between  them  and  he  slew  no  fewer 
than  fifty  thousand  of  the  Jews  in  the  interval  of  six  years. 
Yet  he  had  no  reason  to  rejoice  in  these  victories,  since  he 
did  but  consume  his  own  country,  until  he  at  length  ceased 
fighting  and  desired  to  come  to  an  agreement  with  them. 
But  his  changeability  and  the  irregularity  of  his  conduct 
made  them  hate  him  still  more.  And  when  he  asked  them 
why  they  so  hated  him  and  what  he  should  do  to  appease 
them  they  said,  "Die." 

At  the  same  time  they  invited  Demetrius  to  assist  them,  5.  His 
and  as  he  readily  complied  with  their  request  and  came  with  uiTrUy 
his  army,  the  Jews  joined  with  these  their  auxiliaries  about  ^^f^^ 
Shechem.     In  the  battle  which  followed,  Demetrius  was  the  of  ter- 
conqueror,  although  Alexander's  mercenaries  performed  the  [fJJf^" 
greatest  exploits.     Nevertheless  the  outcome  of  this  battle  ^*^%T' 
proved  different  from  what  was  expected  by  both  sides,  for 
those  who  had  invited  Demetrius  to  come  to  them  did  not 
continue  loyal  to  him  although  he  was  the  conqueror,  and 
six  thousand  Jews  out  of  pity  because  of  the  change  in  Alex- 
ander's condition,  when  he  fled  to  the  mountains,  went  over 
to  him.     Demetrius,  supposing  that  all  the  nation  would  run 
to  Alexander,  left  the  country  and  went  his  way.     The  rest 
of  the  Jewish  multitude,  however,  did  not  lay  aside  their 
quarrels  with  Alexander  when  the  auxiliaries  were  gone,  but 
had  perpetual  war  with  them  until  he  had  slain  the  greater 
part  of  them.     Then  such  a  terror  seized  the  people  that 
eight  thousand  of  his  opponents  fled  away  the  following  night 
out  of  all  Judea  and  did  not  return  until  Alexander  died. 

Alexander  also  subdued  Golan,  Seleucia,  and  what  was  e.  The 
called  the  Valley  of  Antiochus;  besides  which  he  took  the 
strong  fortress  of  Gamala.  Then  he  returned  into  Judea 
after  he  had  spent  three  years  on  this  expedition.  Now  he  (»c?d) 
was  gladly  received  by  the  nation  because  of  his  success. 
So  when  he  was  at  rest  from  war,  he  fell  ill  and  died,  termi- 
nating his  troubles  after  he  had  reigned  twenty-seven  years. 

Now  Alexander  left  the  kingdom  to  Alexandra,  his  wife,  v.Aiex- 
and  trusted  the  Jews  would  readily  submit  to  her,  for  in  op     "    "  " 
posing  his  habitual  violation  of  their  laws  she  gained  the  Is') 
good-will  of  the  people.     Nor  was  he  mistaken  in  his  hopes, 

265 


closing 
years  of 
his 
reign 


andra's 
policy 


DECLINE  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  KINGDOM 

for  this  woman  retained  the  rulership  because  of  her  reputa- 
tion for  piety.     For  she  chiefly  studied  the  ancient  customs 
of  her  country  and  cast  those  men  out  of  the  government 
who  offended  against  their  holy  laws.     And  as  she  had  two 
sons  by  Alexander,  she  made  the  older,  Hyrcanus,  high 
priest,  on  account  of  his  age  and  also  on  accoimt  of  bis  in- 
active temperament. 
8.  The        And  the  Pharisees  joined  themselves  to  her  in  the  govem- 
tekes     nient  and  Alexandra  henceforth  hearkened  to  them  to  a 
of  the     great  degree.     But  these  Pharisees  artfully  insinuated  them- 
fe^""    selves  into  her  favor  little  by  little  and  presently  became 
('•  "•  ''>    the  real  administrators  of  public  affairs.     They  banished  and 
recalled  whom  they  pleased.     While  she  governed  the  people, 
the  Pharisees  governed  her.     Accordingly,  they  slew  Diog- 
enes, a  person  of  prominence,  because  he  had  been  a  friend 
of  Alexander;   they  also  urged  Alexandra  to  put  the  rest  of 
those  to  death  who  had  stirred  up  Alexander  against  them. 
But  the  chief  of  those  who  were  in  danger  fled  to  Aristobulus. 
He  persuaded  his  mother  to  spare  the  men  on  account  of  their 
rank,  but  to  expel  them  from  the  city.     So  when  they  were 
given  their  freedom,  they  were  dispersed  over  all  the  country. 
Q.Alex-       In  the  meantime  Alexandra  fell  sick  and  Aristobulus,  her 
snc^'^  younger  son,  seized  this  opportunity  to  get  possession  of  all 
cessore    the  fortresses.     He  also  used  the  sums  of  money  he  found  in 
them  to  gather  together  a  number  of  mercenaries  and  to  set 
himself  up  as  king.     But  Alexandra,  after  she  had  lived  nine 
years,  died  before  she  could  punish  Aristobulus.     Hyrcanus 
was  heir  to  the  kingdom  and  to  him  his  mother  intrusted  it 
while  she  was  living.     But  Aristobulus  was  superior  to  him 
in  ability  and  spirits,  and  when  there  was  a  battle  between 
them  near  Jericho  to  decide  the  dispute  about  the  kingdom, 
the  majority  deserted  Hyrcanus  and  went  over  to  Aristo- 
bulus.     But  they  came  to  an  agreement  that  Aristobulus 
should  be  the  king,  and  that  Hyrcanus  should  resign,  but 
retain  all  the  rest  of  his  dignities. 
10.  Re-       Now  the  others  who  opposed  Aristobulus  were  afraid, 
Antip-    when  he  thus  unexpectedly  came  to  power.     This  was  es- 
ater'8      pecially  true  of  Antipater,  whom  Aristobulus  hated  of  old. 
uiguea    He  was  by  birth  an  Idumean  and  one  of  the  chief  men  of 
^'"  '^       that  nation  on  account  of  his  ancestry  and  riches  and  other 

20G 


DECLINE  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  KINGDOM 

authority  that  belonged  to  him.  He  urged  Hyrcanus  to  flee 
to  Aretas,  king  of  Arabia,  and  to  retrieve  the  kingdom.  When 
he  had  prepared  them  both  beforehand  he  took  Hyrcanus 
by  night  away  from  the  city  and  escaped  to  Petra,  which  is 
the  royal  capital  of  Arabia.  Here  he  put  Hyrcanus  into 
Aretas's  care.  He  prevailed  with  him  to  give  him  an  army 
to  restore  him  to  his  kingdom.  This  army  consisted  of 
fifty  thousand  footmen  and  horsemen  which  Aristobulus 
v;as  not  able  to  withstand,  but  was  defeated  in  the  first  en- 
counter and  was  driven  out  of  Jerusalem.  He  would  have 
been  taken  by  force,  if  Scaurus,  the  Roman  general,  had  not 
come  and  opportunely  raised  the  siege.  This  was  the  Scau- 
rus who  was  sent  into  Syria  from  Armenia  by  Pompey  the 
Great  when  he  was  fighting  against  Tigranes.  As  soon, 
therefore,  as  Scaurus  arrived  in  the  country,  ambassadors 
came  from  both  the  brothers,  each  of  them  desiring  his  as- 
sistance. But  Aristobulus's  three  hundred  talents  blocked 
the  way  of  justice.  When  Scaurus  had  received  this  sum,  he 
sent  a  herald  to  Hyrcanus  and  the  Arabians,  and  threatened 
them  with  the  resentment  of  the  Romans  and  Pompey  unless 
they  raised  the  siege.  So  Aretas  was  terrified  and  retired 
from  Judea  to  Philadelphia. 

When  Hyrcanus  and  Antipater  were  thus  deprived  of  their  n.  The 
hopes  from  the  Arabians,  they  fled  to  Pompey  for  assistance  to^^ 
and  besought  him  to  show  his  disapproval  of  the  violent  ^°^* 
action  of  Aristobulus  and  to  restore  to  him  the  kingdom,  as  it  <'■ ') 
justly  belonged  to  him.     Aristobulus  was  also  there  himself, 
dressed  in  regal  attire,  but  Pompey  was  indignant  at  his  be- 
havior.    When  Hyrcanus's  friends  also  interceded  strongly 
with  Pompey,  he  took  not  only  his  Roman  forces  but  also 
many  of  his  Syrian  auxiliaries  and  marched  against  Aristo- 
bulus.    But  when  he  had  passed  by  Pella  and  Scythopolis 
and  had  come  to  Korea,  he  heard  that  Aristobulus  had  fled 
to  Alexandrium,  which  was  a  stronghold  fortified  with  the 
greatest  magnificence,  and  situated  upon  a  high  mountain, 
and  he  sent  to  him  and  commanded  him  to  come  down.     So 
Aristobulus  came  down  to  Pompey  and  when  he  had  made 
a  long  defence  of  the  justness  of  his  rule,  he  returned  to  the 
fortress.     Pompey  however  commanded  him  to  give  up  his 
fortified  places  and  forced  him  to  write  to  each  of  his  govem- 

207 


DECLINE  OF  THE  MACCABEAX  KINGDOM 

ors  to  surrender.  Accordingly  he  did  what  he  was  ordered 
to  do,  but  being  displeased,  he  retired  to  Jerusalem  and  pre- 
pared to  fight  with  Pompey. 

12.  The  But  Pompey  gave  him  no  time  to  make  any  preparations 
and'  and  followed  at  his  heels.  And  Aristobulus  was  so  fright- 
perfidy  gned  at  his  approach  that  he  came  and  met  him  as  a  sup- 
tobuius  pliant.  He  also  promised  him  money  and  to  deliver  up 
(66-7=b)  ^Q^jj  himself  and  the  city.     Yet  he  did  not  keep  any  one  of 

his  promises.  At  this  treatment  Pompey  was  very  angry 
and  took  Aristobulus  into  custody.  And  when  he  had  en- 
tered the  city  he  looked  about  to  see  where  he  might  make 
his  attack,  for  he  saw  that  the  walls  were  so  firm  that  it 
would  be  hard  to  overcome  them  and  the  valley  before  the 
walls  was  terrible  and  the  temple  which  was  in  that  valley 
was  itself  surrounded  by  such  a  strong  wall  that  if  the  city 
was  taken  the  temple  would  be  a  second  place  of  refuge  for 
the  enemy.  Inasmuch  as  Pompey  deliberated  a  long  time, 
a  sedition  arose  among  the  people  within  the  city.  Aristo- 
bulus's  party  was  willing  to  fight  to  save  their  king,  while  the 
party  of  Hyrcanus  was  ready  to  open  the  gates  to  Pompey. 
Then  Aristobulus's  party  was  defeated  and  retired  into  the 
temple  and  cut  off  the  communications  between  the  temple 
and  the  city  by  breaking  down  the  bridge  which  joined  them 
together,  and  they  prepared  to  resist  to  the  utmost. 

13.  Pompey  himself  filled  up  the  ditch  which  was  on  the  north 
fhlf ^  °^  side  of  the  temple  and  the  entire  valley  also,  the  army  being 
temple    obliged  to  carry  the  material  for  this  purpose.     Indeed,  it 

was  difficult  to  fill  up  that  valley  because  of  its  great  depth 
and  especially  as  the  Jews  from  their  superior  position  used 
all  possible  means  to  repel  them.  As  soon  as  Pompey  had 
filled  up  the  valley,  he  erected  high  towers  upon  the  bank. 

14.  The  Now  Pompey  admired  not  only  the  other  examples  of  the 
carnage  Jews'  fortitude,  but  especially  that  they  did  not  at  all  inter- 
('■ ')       mit  their  religious  services,  even  when  they  were  surrounded 

with  darts  on  all  sides ;  for,  as  if  the  city  were  in  full  peace, 
their  daily  sacrifices  and  purifications  and  all  their  religious 
rites  were  still  carried  out  before  God  with  the  utmost  exact- 
ness. Nor  when  the  temple  v/as  taken  and  they  were  slain 
about  the  altar  daily,  did  they  cease  from  those  things  that 
are  appointed  by  their  law  to  be  observed.     For  it  was  in  the 

2C8 


CHARACTER  OF  ALEXANDER  JANNEUS 

third  month  of  the  siege  before  the  Romans  could  even  with 
a  great  struggle  overthrow  one  of  the  towers  and  get  into  the 
temple.  The  greater  part  of  the  Jews  were  slain  by  their 
own  countrymen  of  the  opposite  faction  and  an  innumerable 
multitude  threw  themselves  down  from  the  walls.  Of  the 
Jews  twelve  thousand  were  slain,  but  of  the  Romans  very 
few,  although  a  greater  number  were  wounded. 

But  there  was  nothing  that  affected  the  nation  so  much  JS- 
in  the  calamities  which  they  then  suffered  as  that  their  holy  ecra'uon 
place,  hitherto  unseen,  should  be  laid  open  to  strangers,  timple 
For  Pompey  and  those  who  were  about  him  went  into  the  ("•• '') 
temple  itself,  where  it  was  lawful  for  the  high  priest  alone 
to  enter,  and  saw  what  was  deposited  therein ;  but  he  com- 
manded the  ministers  about  the  temple  to  purify  it  and  to 
perform  their  accustomed  sacrifices. 

Moreover  he  reappointed  Hyrcanus  high  priest,  by  which  i6. 
he  acted  the  part  of  a  good  general  and  reconciled  the  people  oftL 
to  him  rather  by  kindness  than  by  terrorizing  them.     He  ^^^^'^' 
took  away  from  the  nation  all  those  cities  that  they  had  family 
formerly  taken  and  reduced  Judea  to  its  own  bounds.     Then 
he  made  all  the  haste  he  could  to  go  through  Cilicia  on  his  way 
to  Rome,  taking  Aristobulus  and  his  two  children  along  with 
him  as  captives.     One  of  Aristobulus's  sons,  Alexander,  ran 
away  on  the  journey,  but  the  younger,  Antigonus,  with  his 
sisters,  was  carried  to  Rome. 

I.  The  Character  and  Policy  of  Alexander  Janneus.    For  the 

picture  of  the  character  of  Alexander  Janneus  we  are  chiefly  dependent 
upon  Josephus,  and  it  is  not  clear  how  far  this  late  Jewish  historian  was 
influenced  by  the  prevailing  prejudices  against  that  ruler  who  figured  as 
the  arch  enemy  of  the  Pharisees.  The  incidents  recorded  reveal,  how- 
ever, a  most  sinister  character.  He  was  ambitious,  but  his  ambitions 
were  selfish  and  low.  He  was  energetic  and  tireless,  but  his  energy  was 
wasted  in  futile  undertakings.  Furthermore,  he  was  unscrupulous,  vin- 
dictive, and  merciless.  There  is  not  the  slightest  indication  that  he  was 
actuated  by  any  worthy  ideal  of  service.  To  the  Jewish  state  and  race 
it  was  a  great  calamity  that  a  man  of  this  type  should  gain  control  of  the 
nation  at  the  moment  when  it  had  attained  its  greatest  material  strength. 
Under  the  kindly  and  wise  guidance  of  Simon  the  subsequent  history 
of  the  Jewish  state  would  doubtless  have  been  far  different.     Janneus's 

269 


(■; 


DECLINE  OF  THE  INIACCABEAN  KINGDOM 

first  aim  was  to  establish  his  power  as  an  absolute  despot.  He  ardently 
accepted  the  ideal  of  an  Oriental  ruler  that  had  been  imposed  upon  the 
Jews  during  the  short  reign  of  his  brother  Aristobulus.  In  realizing  this 
ambition  he  met,  as  did  every  other  king  in  Israel's  history,  the  strong 
opposition  of  the  people  and  a  bold  assertion  of  their  inherited  liberties. 
His  second  aim  was  to  break  completely  the  power  of  the  Pharisees. 
They  were  the  party  of  the  people  and  had  no  sympathy  with  his  policies. 
In  them,  therefore,  he  recognized  his  chief  opponents.  His  third  am- 
bition was  to  extend  the  territory  of  the  Jewish  state  to  its  farthest 
natural  bounds.  Soon  after  the  beginning  of  his  reign  he  succeeded  in 
arousing  the  bitter  hostility  of  the  Greek  cities  on  his  eastern  and  western 
borders,  of  the  reigning  kings  of  Egypt,  and  of  the  rising  Arabian  power 
to  the  south  of  the  Dead  Sea.  The  objects  for  which  he  strove  were 
comparatively  petty:  possession  of  the  cities  of  Ptolemais  and  Gaza  and 
of  certain  east-Jordan  cities,  such  as  Gadara  and  Amathus.  He  was 
more  often  defeated  than  \-ictorious,  but  his  love  of  struggle  and  advent- 
ure and  lust  for  conquest  ever  goaded  him  on.  In  desperation  his  sub- 
jects even  ventured  to  call  in  Demetrius,  the  governor  of  Damascus,  but 
when  Alexander  was  driven  away  in  defeat  the  nation's  gratitude  and 
loyalty  to  the  Maccabean  house  reasserted  itself  and  he  was  recalled. 
Instead  of  granting  a  general  armstice  and  thus  conciliating  his  dis- 
tracted people,  he  treacherously  used  his  new-won  power  to  crucify 
publicly  eight  hundred  of  the  Pharisees,  Horror  and  fear  seized  the 
survivors,  so  that,  according  to  Josephus,  eight  thousand  of  them  fled 
into  exile.  After  six  years  of  civil  war  and  the  loss  of  fifty  thousand 
lives,  Alexander  Janneus  finally  realized  his  first  ambition  and  became 
absolute  master  of  his  kingdom.  In  achieving  his  ambitions,  how- 
ever, he  well  earned  the  title  by  which  his  contemporaries  described 
him,  "the  Son  of  a  Thracian,"  that  is,  Barbarian. 

II.  The  Effects  of  His  Rule.  The  disastrous  effects  of  the  reign  of 
Alexander  Janneus  may  be  briefly  recapitulated.  They  were:  (1)  the 
destruction  of  the  loyalty  of  the  majority  of  the  Jews  to  the  INIaccabean 
house;  (2)  the  intensifying  of  the  opposition  between  Pharisees  and 
Sadducees  to  the  point  of  murderous  hate;  (3)  the  extension  of  the  sphere 
of  Jewsh  influence  from  the  Mediterranean  on  the  west  to  the  desert  on 
the  east,  and  from  the  Lebanons  to  the  southern  desert;  but  (4)  the  drain- 
ing of  the  life-blood  and  energies  of  the  Jewnsh  kingdom,  so  that  it  was 
far  weaker  and  more  disorganized  than  when  Janneus  came  to  the  throne. 

III.  Alexandra's  Reign  (78-69  B.C.).  Alexandra  was  the  second 
queen  who  reigned  in  Israel's  history.    Her  policy,  unlike  that  of 

270 


ALEXANDRA'S  REIGN 

Athaliah  of  old,  was  on  the  whole  constructive.  Although  she  was  the 
wife  of  Janneus,  she  reversed  his  policy,  and  placed  the  Pharisees  in 
control.  The  return  of  the  exiles  and  the  restoration  of  the  prophetic 
party  promised  peace  and  prosperity.  The  ancient  law  was  expanded 
and  rigorously  enforced.  According  to  the  Talmud  it  was  during  this 
period  that  elementary  schools  were  introduced  in  connection  with  each 
synagogue.  Their  exact  nature  is  not  known,  but  it  is  probable  that  the 
law  was  the  subject  studied  and  that  the  scribes  were  the  teachers.  This 
change  of  policy  was  undoubtedly  very  acceptable  to  the  people,  but  the 
Pharisees  made  the  grave  mistake  of  using  their  new  power  to  be  re- 
venged upon  the  Sadducean  nobles  who  had  supported  the  bloody  policy 
of  Alexander  Janneus.  They  soon  suffered  the  evil  consequences  of 
attempting  to  right  wrong  by  wrong.  The  Sadducees  found  in  Aristo- 
bulus,  the  ambitious  and  energetic  younger  son  of  Janneus,  an  effective 
champion.  Alexandra,  in  permitting  them  to  take  possession  of  the 
many  strongholds  throughout  the  land,  also  committed  a  fatal  error,  for 
it  gave  them  control  of  the  military  resources  of  the  kingdom.  Aristo- 
bulus  was  not  slow  in  asserting  his  power,  with  the  result  that  even  before 
Alexandra  died  he  had  seized  seventy-two  of  the  fortresses  and  had 
aroused  a  large  part  of  the  people  to  revolt.  ^Vhile  her  reign  was  on  the 
whole  peaceful,  it  was  but  the  lull  before  the  great  storm  that  swept  over 
the  nation. 

IV.  Quarrels  between  Hyrcanus  and  Aristobulus.  Unfortunately 
Alexandra's  older  son,  H}Tcanus,  was  indolent  and  inefficient.  He  had 
been  appointed  high  priest  and,  when  Aristobulus  assumed  the  title  of 
king,  he  compelled  Hyrcanus  II  to  be  content  with  this  humbler  title. 
Aristobulus's  reign  might  have  been  comparatively  peaceful  had  not  at 
this  time  a  new  and  sinister  influence  appeared  in  the  troubled  politics 
of  Palestine.  It  was  one  of  the  results  of  John  Hyrcanus's  forcible 
judaizing  of  the  Idumeans.  Antipater,  the  son  of  the  Idumean  whom 
Alexander  Janneus  had  made  governor  of  Idumea,  recognized  in  the 
rivalry  betn-een  Hyrcanus  and  Aristobulus  an  opportunity  to  mount  to 
power.  He  first  persuaded  Hyrcanus  to  flee  to  Petra.  Then,  with  the 
aid  of  the  Arabian  king,  Aretas,  he  finally  compelled  Aristobulus  and 
his  followers  to  seek  refuge  on  the  temple  hill  in  Jerusalem.  The  pict- 
ure of  the  Jews  divided  into  two  hostile  camps  and  engaged  in  bitter 
civil  war  in  the  very  precincts  of  the  temple  under  the  leadership  of  the 
great-grandsons  of  the  patriotic  Simon  presents  a  sad  contrast  to  the  noble 
spirit  and  valiant  achievements  of  the  founders  of  the^Maccabean  kingdom 
who  had  first  taken  up  the  sword  in  defence  of  the  temple  and  its  ser\'ice. 

271 


DECLINE  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  KINGDOM 

V.  Rome's  Intervention.  This  situation  gave  Rome  its  desired  op- 
portunity for  intcr\'ention.  Pompey  in  70  B.C.  made  a  successful  cam- 
paign against  iSIithridates,  king  of  Pontus,  and  against  Tigranes,  king 
of  Armenia.  Rome's  policy  was  to  conquer  all  of  southwestern  Asia  as 
far  as  the  Euphrates.  Ignoring  the  peril  of  the  situation,  both  Aristo- 
bulus  and  Hyrcanus  appealed  to  Pompey's  lieutenant,  Scaurus.  As  a 
result  the  Arabians  were  ordered  to  withdraw,  and  Aristobulus  for  a 
brief  time  was  left  master  of  the  situation.  In  the  spring  of  63  B.C., 
however,  when  Pompey  came  to  Damascus,  there  appeared  before  him 
three  embassies,  one  representing  the  cause  of  Aristobulus,  another  that 
of  Hyrcanus,  and  still  a  third  presented  the  request  of  the  Pharisees  that 
Rome  assume  political  control  of  Palestine  and  leave  them  free  to  devote 
themselves  to  the  study  and  application  of  the  their  law.  The  fall  of 
Aristobulus  hastened  what  was  now  inevitable.  Although  he  was  held 
a  prisoner  by  Pompey,  his  followers  remained  intrenched  on  the  temple 
hill  and  were  conquered  only  after  a  protracted  siege  and  the  loss  of 
many  lives.  Aristobulus  and  his  family  were  carried  off  captives  to 
Rome  to  grace  Pompey's  triumph,  and  the  request  of  the  Pharisees  was 
granted:  Rome  henceforth  held  Palestine  under  its  direct  control. 
Thus  after  a  little  more  than  a  century  (165-63  B.C.)  the  Jews  again 
lost  their  independence,  and  the  Maccabean  kingdom  became  only  a 
memory,  never  to  be  revived  save  for  a  brief  moment. 

VI.  Causes  of  the  Fall  of  the  Jewish  Kingdom.  The  Jewish  king- 
dom fell  as  the  result  of  causes  which  can  be  clearly  recognized.  It  was 
primarily  because  the  ideals  and  ambitions  of  the  Maccabean  leaders 
themselves  became  material  and  selfish.  They  proved  unable  to  resist 
the  temptations  of  success.  Greed  for  power  quenched  their  early  patri- 
otism. The  material  spirit  of  their  age  obscured  the  nobler  ideals  of 
their  spiritual  teachers.  The  result  was  a  tyranny  and  corruption  that 
made  the  later  kings  misleaders  rather  than  true  leaders  of  their  nation. 
Parallel  to  the  bitter  struggle  between  the  kings  and  their  subjects  was 
the  bitter  feud  between  the  Sadducees  and  the  Pharisees.  Normal 
party  rivalry  grew  into  murderous  hatred,  and  in  taking  revenge  upon 
each  other  they  brought  ruin  upon  the  commonwealth.  The  final  end 
was  hastened  by  the  suicidal  feud  between  the  brothers  Hyrcanus  and 
Aristobulus,  fomented  by  the  unprincipled  machinations  of  the  Idumean 
Antipater.  In  the  final  crisis  the  Pharisaic  policy  of  submission  and  of 
peace  at  any  cost  paved  the  way  for  the  realization  of  Rome's  ambition 
and  made  the  ultimate  conquest  of  Palestine  practically  inevitable. 
Thus  the  kingdom,  founded  in  the  face  of  almost  insuperable  obstacles 

272 


CAUSES  OF  THE  FALL  OF  THE  JEWISH  KLXGDOM 

and  consecrated  with  the  Hfe-blood  of  many  heroes,  fell  ignominiously 
as  the  result  of  the  same  causes  that  throughout  the  ages  have  proved 
the  ruin  of  even  stronger  empires. 

VII.  Politicai,  Intellectual,  and  Religious  Effects  of  the  Mac- 
cabean  Struggle.  This  century  of  valiant  achievement,  colossal  er- 
rors, and  overwhelming  failure  left  its  deep  impression  upon  the  Jew- 
ish race.  It  witnessed  the  return  of  many  Jews  of  the  dispersion  to 
Jerusalem  and  Judea  and  the  development  of  a  strong  sense  of  racial 
unity.  Henceforth  the  Jews  throughout  the  world  looked  to  Jerusalem 
as  their  true  political  and  religious  capital.  The  events  of  this  period 
intensified  the  ancient  feud  between  Jew  and  Samaritan  and  gave  the 
latter  ample  reason  for  that  hostility  toward  their  southern  kinsmen 
which  appears  in  the  Gospel  narratives.  It  was  during  this  age  that 
the  parties  of  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees  finally  crystallized  and  form- 
ulated those  tenets  and  policies  which  guided  them  during  the  next 
century.  At  this  time  the  foundations  were  laid  for  the  rule  of  the  house 
of  Herod  which  exerted  such  a  baleful  influence  upon  the  fortunes  and 
destinies  of  the  Jews.  It  likewise  marked  the  beginning  and  culmina- 
tion of  Rome's  influence  over  the  lands  of  the  eastern  Mediterranean  and 
that  subjection  of  the  Jews  to  Gentile  rulers  which  has  continued  until 
the  present. 

The  Maccabean  period  gave  to  the  Jews  a  greatly  enlarged  intellect- 
ual vision  and  led  them  to  adopt  many  of  the  ideas  of  their  Greek  con- 
querors. In  their  literature  it  is  easy  to  recognize  the  influence  of  the 
more  logical  Greek  methods  of  reasoning  and  of  the  scientific  attitude 
toward  the  universe.  It  was  during  this  period  that  the  wise  were 
transformed  into  scribes,  and  the  rule  of  the  scribal  method  of  thinking 
and  interpretation  began.  The  struggles  through  which  the  Jews  passed 
intensified  their  love  for  the  law  and  the  temple  services.  Duty  was 
more  and  more  defined  in  the  terms  of  ceremonial,  and  the  Pharisees 
entered  upon  that  vast  and  impossible  task  of  providing  rules  for  man's 
every  act.  Out  of  the  struggles  of  the  IMaccabean  period  came  that 
fusion  of  Hellenic  and  Jewish  ideas  that  has  become  an  important  factor 
in  all  human  thought.  At  last  under  the  influence  of  the  great  crises 
through  which  they  had  passed,  the  belief  in  individual  immortality 
gained  wide  acceptance  among  the  Jews.  Side  by  side  with  this  came 
the  belief  in  a  personal  de\al  and  a  hierarchy  of  demons  opposed  to  the 
divine  hierarchy  at  whose  head  was  Jehovah.  Last  of  all  the  taste  of 
freedom  under  a  Jewish  ruler  brought  again  to  the  front  the  kingly 
messianic  hopes  of  the  race,  and  led  them  to  long  and  struggle  for  their 

273 


DECLINE  OF  THE  MACCABEAN  KINGDOM 

realization.  Thus  in  this  brief  century  Judaism  attained  in  many  ways 
its  final  form,  and  only  in  the  light  of  this  process  is  it  possible  fully 
to  understand  and  appreciate  the  background  of  the  New  Testament 
history. 


274 


8=; 


THE   RULE  OF  ROME 
§  CXVn.     THE  RISE  OF  THE  HERODIAN  HOUSE 

Now  Alexander,  that  son  of  Aristobulus  who  ran  away  i.The 
from  Pompey,  after  a  time  gathered  together  a  considerable  ffon^'fe, 
body  of  men  and  made  a  strong  attack  upon  Hyrcanus,  and  by 
overran  Judea,  and  was  on  the  point  of  dethroning  him.  a^nde'r 
And  indeed  he  would  have  come  to  Jerusalem,  and  would  jg^; 
have  ventured  to  rebuild  its  wall  that  had  been  thrown  down  War.  i, 
by  Pompey,  had  not  Gabinius,  who  was  sent  as  Scaurus's 
successor  in  Syria,  showed  his  bravery  by  making  an  attack 
on  Alexander.     Alexander,  being  afraid  at  his  approach, 
assembled  a  larger  army  composed  of  ten  thousand  armed 
footmen  and  fifteen  hundred  horsemen. 

Now  when  Gabinius  came  to  Alexandriimi,  finding  a  great  2.  its 
many  encamped  there,  he  tried  by  promising  them  pardon  p"es- 
for  their  former  offences  to  attach  them  to  him  before  it  came  f^^-^y 
to  fighting;  but  when  they  would  listen  to  nothing  reason-  iu3  ' 
able,  he  slew  a  great  number  of  them  and  shut  up  the  rest  in  ^*''  '^ 
the  citadel.     Therefore  when  Alexander  despaired  of  ever 
obtaining  the  rulership,  he  sent  ambassadors  to  Gabinius 
and  besought  him  to  pardon  his  offences.     He  also  surren- 
dered to  him  the  remaining  fortresses,  Hyrcanium  and  Ma- 
cherus.     After  this  Gabinius  brought  Hyrcanus  back  to  Jeru- 
salem and  put  him  in  charge  of  the  temple.     He  also  divided 
the  entire  nation  into  five  districts,  assigning  one  to  Jerusalem, 
another  to  Gadara,  another  to  Amathus,  a  fourth  to  Jericho, 
and  the  fifth  to  Sepphoris,  a  city  of  Galilee. 

Not  long  after  Aristobulus  became  the  cause  of  new  disturb-  3.  Sup- 
ances  by  fleeing  from  Rome.  He  again  assembled  many  of  ^[^'„f 
the  Jews  who  were  desirous  of  a  change  and  those  who  were 


the  re- 
bellion 


devoted  to  him  of  old ;  and  when  he  had  taken  Alexandrium  id  by 
in  the  first  place,  he  attempted  to  build  a  wall  about  it.     But  hi?uia' 
the  Romans  followed  him,  and  when  it  came  to  battle,  Aris-  W 
tobulus's  party  for  a  long  time  fought  bravely,  but  at  last 

275 


THE  RISE  OF  THE  HERODIAX  HOUSE 

they  were  overcome  by  the  Romans  and  of  them  five  thou- 
sand fell.     Aristobulus  was  again  carried  to  Rome  by  Ga- 
binius. 
4;  An-        Now  when  Gabinius  set  out  to  make  war  against  the  Par- 
te'?^3       thians,  Antipater  furnished  him  with  money  and  weapons 
plnting   ^^d  corn  and  auxiliaries,  but  during  Gabinius's  absence  the 
thh^d  ^    other  parts  of  Syria  were  in  insurrection,  and  Alexander,  the 
rebel-     SOU  of  Aristobulus,  Stirred  the  Jews  again  to  revolt.     But  at 
^7^°       the  battle  fought  near  Mount  Tabor  ten  thousand  of  them 
were  slain  and  the  rest  of  the  multitude  scattered  in  flight. 
So  Gabinius  came  to  Jerusalem  and  settled  the  government 
as  Antipater  desired. 
G,  An-        Now  this  Antipater  married  a  wife  of  an  eminent  family 
te^^s"      among  the  Arabians,  whose  name  was  Cypros.     And  she 
(tb")^'^^    bore  him  four  sons,  Phasaelus  and  Herod,  who  was  after- 
ward king,  and  besides  these  Joseph  and  Pheroras.     And  he 
had  a  daughter  by  the  name  of  Salome. 

6.  But  after  the  flight  of  Pompey  and  of  the  senate  beyond 
S^Adg-  the  Ionian  Sea,  Caesar  gained  possession  of  Rome  and  of  the 
tobuius  Empire  and  released  Aristobulus  from  his  bonds.     He  also 

intrusted  two  legions  to  him  and  sent  him  in  haste  into 
Syria,  hoping  that  by  his  efforts  he  would  easily  conquer 
that  country  and  the  territory  adjoining  Judea.  But  he  was 
poisoned  by  Pompey's  sympathizers. 

7,  An-  Now  after  Pompey  died,  Antipater  changed  sides  and  cul- 
te^^s'  tivated  a  friendship  with  Cgesar.  And  when  Mithridates  of 
services  Pergamus  with  the  force  he  led  against  Egypt  was  shut  out 
Cssar  from  the  roads  about  Pelusium  and  was  forced  to  stay  at 
ite.'ii.)    Ascalon,  Antipater  persuaded  the  Arabians  among  whom  he 

had  lived  to  assist  him  and  came  himself  at  the  head  of 
three  thousand  armed  Jews.  He  also  urged  the  men  of 
power  in  Syria  to  come  to  his  assistance.  In  the  attack  on 
Pelusium  Antipater  distinguished  himself  pre-eminently,  for 
he  pulled  down  that  part  of  the  wall  which  was  opposite  him 
and  leaped  first  of  all  into  the  city  with  the  men  who  were 
about  him.  Thus  was  Pelusium  taken.  Moreover,  as  he 
was  marching  on,  those  Jews  who  inhabited  the  district 
called  Onias  stopped  him,  but  Antipater  not  only  persuaded 
them  not  to  hinder  but  also  to  supply  provisions  for  their 
army.    Thereupon  in  the  Delta  Antipater  fell  upon  those 

276 


THE  RISE  OF  THE  HERODIAN  HOUSE 

who  pursued  Mithridates  and  slew  many  of  them  and  pur- 
sued the  rest  till  he  captured  their  camp,  while  he  lost  no 
more  than  eighty  of  his  own  men.  Thereupon  Caesar  en- 
couraged Antipater  to  undertake  other  hazardous  enterprises 
for  him  by  giving  him  great  commendations  and  hopes  of 
reward.  In  all  these  enterprises  Antipater  showed  himself 
a  most  venturesome  warrior,  and  he  had  many  wounds 
almost  all  over  his  body  as  proofs  of  his  courage. 

And  when  Caesar  had  settled  the  affairs  of  Egypt  and  re-  8.  His 
turned  again  into  Syria,  he  gave  Antipater  the  rights  of  a  '^^^^ 
Roman  citizen  and  freedom  from  taxes,  and  made  him  an  ob-  W 
ject  of  admiration  because  of  the  other  honors  and  marks  of 
friendship  that  he  bestowed  upon  him.  It  was  on  this  account 
that  he  also  confirmed  Hyrcanus  in  the  high  priesthood. 

It  was  about  this  time  that  Antigonus,  the  son  of  Aristo-  9.  His 
bulus,  came  to  Caesar  and  became  in  a  surprising  manner  the  Vlitm 
cause  of  Antipater's  further  advance.     For  he  proceeded  to  i^®'  ""' 
denounce  Hyrcanus  and  Antipater.     Then  Antipater  threw 
off  his  garments  and  showed  the  many  wounds  he  had,  and 
said  that  regarding  his  good  will  to  Caesar  it  was  not  neces- 
sary for  him  to  say  a  word  because  his  body  cried  aloud, 
though  he  himself  said  nothing.     When  Caesar  heard  this 
he  declared  Hyrcanus  to  be  most  deserving  of  the  high  priest- 
hood, and  Antipater  was  appointed  procurator  of  all  Judea 
and  also  obtained  permission  to  rebuild  those  walls  of  his 
country  that  had  been  thrown  down. 

As  soon  as  Antipater  had  conducted  Caesar  out  of  Syria,   lo.  His 
he  returned  to  Judea,  and  the  first  thing  he  did  was  to  re-  Jidea^ 
build  the  walls  of  his  own  country.     Then  he  went  over  the  ^'> 
country  and  quieted  the  tumults  therein.     And  at  this  time 
he  settled  the  affairs  of  the  country  by  himself,  because  he 
saw  that  Hyrcanus  was  inactive  and  not  capable  of  managing 
the  affairs  of  the  kingdom.     So  Antipater  appointed  his  oldest 
son,  Phasaelus,  governor  of  Jerusalem  and  the  surrounding 
territory.     He  also  sent  his  second  son,  Herod,  who  was 
very  young,  with  equal  authority  into  Galilee. 

Now  Herod  was  a  very  active  man  and  soon  found  a  field  Herod's 
for  his  energy.     When,  therefore,  he  found  that  Hezekias,  ^^Pf^- 
the  leader  of  the  robbers,  overran  the  adjoining  parts  of  work  in 
Syria  with  a  great  band  of  men,  he  caught  him  and  slew  him  ^!^.  LJ** 

277 


THE  RISE  OF  THE  HERODIAN  HOUSE 

and  many  more  of  the  robbers.  This  exploit  was  especially 
pleasing  to  the  Syrians,  so  that  songs  were  sung  in  Herod's 
commendation  both  in  the  villages  and  in  the  cities,  because 
he  had  secured  peace  for  them  and  had  preserved  their 
possessions. 

12.  The  At  this  time  a  mighty  war  arose  among  the  Romans  after 
murder  ^j^g  treacherous  murder  of  Caesar  by  Cassius  and  Brutus. 
Cresar  Accordingly  Cassius  came  into  Syria  and  assumed  command 
death '°  of  the  army,  and  went  about  exacting  tribute  of  the  cities 
Antip-  to  such  a  degree  that  they  were  not  able  to  endure  it.  Dur- 
ater       ing  the  war  between  Cassius  and  Brutus  on  the  one  side, 

against  the  younger  Caesar  (Augustus)  and  Antony  on  the 
other,  Cassius  and  Murcus  gathered  an  army  out  of  Syria. 
And  because  Herod  had  furnished  a  great  part  of  the  neces- 
sities, they  made  him  procurator  of  all  Syria  and  gave  him 
an  army  of  infantry  and  cavalry.  Cassius  promised  him 
also  that  after  the  war  was  over  he  would  make  him  king 
of  Judea.  But  it  so  happened  that  the  power  and  hopes  of 
his  son  became  the  cause  of  Antipater's  destruction.  For 
inasmuch  as  a  certain  Malichus  was  afraid  of  this,  he  bribed 
one  of  the  king's  cup-bearers  to  give  a  poisoned  potion  to 
Antipater.  Thus  he  became  a  sacrifice  to  Malichus's  wick- 
edness and  died  after  the  feast. 

13.  Herod,  however,  avenged  himself  upon  Malichus.  And 
^owbg  those  who  hitherto  did  not  favor  him  now  joined  him  be- 
po^jer  cause  of  his  marriage  into  the  family  of  Hyrcanus,  for  he 
123)'       had  formerly  married  a  wife  from  his  own  country  of  noble 

blood,  Doris  by  name,  who  bore  to  him  Antipater.  Now  he 
planned  to  marry  Mariamne,  the  daughter  of  Alexander,  the 
son  of  Aristobulus  and  the  grandson  of  Hyrcanus. 

14.  But  when  Caesar  and  Antony  had  slain  Cassius  near  Phi- 
lippi  and  Caesar  had  gone  to  Italy  and  Antony  to  Asia,  the 
great  men  of  the  Jews  came  and  accused  Phasaelus  and  Herod 

author-  that  they  held  the  government  by  force  and  that  Hyrcanus 
Antony  had  uothiug  more  than  an  honorable  name.  Herod  ap- 
i*' ')  peared  ready  to  answer  this  accusation,  and  having  made 
Antony  his  friend  by  the  large  sums  of  money  which  he  gave 
him,  influenced  him  not  to  listen  to  the  charges  spoken 
against  him  by  enemies.  After  this  a  hundred  of  the  prin- 
cipal men  among  the  Jews  came  to  Antony  at  Daphne  near 

278 


Con 
fiima' 
tion 
of  his 


13'") 


THE  RISE  OF  THE  HERODIAN  HOUSE 

Antioch  and  accused  Phasaelus  and  Herod.  But  Massala 
opposed  them  and  defended  the  brothers  with  the  help  of 
Hyrcanus.  When  Antony  had  heard  both  sides,  he  asked 
Hyrcanus  which  party  was  best  fitted  to  govern.  Hyrcanus 
replied  that  Herod  and  his  party  were  the  best  fitted.  There- 
fore Antony  appointed  the  brothers  tetrarchs,  and  intrusted 
to  them  the  rulership  of  Judea. 

Now  two  years  after,  when  Barzaphanes,  a  Parthian  gov-  is.Res- 
ernor,  and  Pacorus,  the  king's  son,  had  captured  Syria,  they  tioT 
were  persuaded  by  the  promise  of  a  thousand  talents  and  ^^^^^^ 
five  hundred  women  to  bring  back  Antigonus  to  his  kingdom  kfng- 
and  to  turn  Hyrcanus  out  of  it.     Thus  Antigonus  was  brought  by'the 
back  into  Judea  by  the  king  of  the  Parthians,  and  received  ^<^'"- 
Hyrcanus  and  Phasaelus  as  prisoners.     Being  afraid  that  ('i^3i\ 
Hyrcanus,  who  was  under  the  guard  of  the  Parthians,  might  x"v, 
have  his  kingdom  restored  to  him  by  the  multitude,  Antig- 
onus cut  off  his  ears  and  thereby  guarded  against  the  pos- 
sibility that  the  high  priesthood  would  ever  come  to  him  again, 
inasmuch  as  he  was  maimed,  and  the  law  required  that  this 
dignity  should  belong  to  none  but  those  who  had  all  their 
members  intact.     Phasaelus,  perceiving  that  he  was  to  be  put 
to  death,  dashed  his  head  against  a  great  stone  and  thereby 
took  away  his  own  life. 

Herod,  however,  went  off  by  night,  taking  those  nearest  i6. 
related  to  him.     As  soon  as  the  Parthians  perceived  it,  they  lill^pl' 
pursued  after  him,  but  when  at  every  assault  he  had  slain  a  {(^^^i 
great  many  of  them,  he  came  to  the  stronghold  of  Masada,    i3;  ' 
and  there  he  left  eight  hundred  of  his  men  to  guard  the 
women,  and  provisions  sufficient  for  a  siege ;  but  he  himself 
hastened  to  Petra  in  Arabia.     He  was  not  able,  however,  to 
find  any  friendship  among  the  Arabians,  for  their  king  sent 
to  him  and  commanded  him  to  turn  back  immediately  from 
the  country.     So  when  Herod  found  that  the  Arabians  were 
his  enemies,  he  turned  back  to  Egypt.     And  when  he  came 
to  Pelusium,  he  could  not  obtain  passage  from  those  who  lay 
with  the  fleet.     Therefore  he  besought  their  captains  to  let 
him  go  with  them.     So  out  of  respect  for  the  fame  and  rank 
of  the  man  they  carried  him  to  Alexandria.     And  when  he 
came  to  the  city,  he  was  received  with  great  splendor  by 
Cleopatra,  who  hoped  he  might  be  persuaded  to  be  the  com- 

27a 


141b.  J) 


THE  RISE  OF  THE  HERODIAN  HOUSE 

mander  of  her  forces  in  the  expedition  she  was  about  to  un- 
dertake.    But  he  rejected  the  queen's  entreaty  and  sailed  for 
•  Rome,  where  first  of  all  he  went  to  Antony  and  laid  before 
him  the  calamities  that  had  overtaken  himself  and  his  family. 

17.  Ap-  Thereupon  Antony's  pity  was  aroused  because  of  the 
L°ng***^  change  that  had  come  about  in  Herod's  affairs,  so  he  then 
of  the  resolved  to  have  him  made  king  of  the  Jews.  Herod  found 
R^me^*  Cassar  even  more  ready  than  Antony  because  he  recalled  the 
^*^         campaigns  through  which  he  had  gone  with  Herod's  father, 

Antipater,  in  Egypt,  and  his  hospitable  treatment  and  good 
will  in  all  things.  Besides  he  recognized  the  energy  of 
Herod.  Accordingly  he  called  the  senate  together.  There 
Messala,  and  after  him  Atratinus,  introduced  Herod  to  them 
and  gave  a  full  account  of  his  father's  merits  and  of  his  own 
good  will  to  the  Romans.  Antony  also  came  in  and  told 
them  that  it  was  to  their  advantage  in  the  Parthian  war  that 
Herod  should  be  king.  So  they  all  gave  their  votes  for  it. 
And  when  the  senate  disbanded,  Antony  and  Caesar  went  out 
with  Herod  between  them.  Antony  also  made  a  feast  for 
Herod  on  the  first  day  of  his  reign. 

18.  His  Herod  then  sailed  from  Italy  and  came  to  Ptolemais. 
pti^s  -^^^  ^^  ^^°^  ^^  ^®  ^^^  assembled  a  considerable  army  of 
for  the  foreigners  and  of  his  own  countrymen,  he  marched  through 
qu^e°s't  Galilee  against  Antigonus.  The  number  of  his  forces  in- 
tltfne'  creased  each  day  as  he  went  along,  and  all  Galilee  with  few 
i^iti)^'  exceptions  joined  him.     After  this  Herod  took  Joppa,  and 

then  he  marched  to  Masada  to  free  his  kinsmen.  Then  he 
marched  to  Jerusalem,  where  the  soldiers  who  were  with 
the  Roman  general  Silo  joined  his  own,  as  did  many  from  the 
city  because  they  feared  his  power.  Herod  did  not  lie  idle, 
but  seized  Idumea  and  held  it  with  two  thousand  footmen 
and  four  hundred  horsemen.  He  also  removed  his  mother 
and  all  his  kinsmen,  who  had  been  at  Masada,  to  Samaria. 
And  when  he  had  settled  them  securely,  he  marched  to  cap- 
ture the  remaining  parts  of  Galilee,  and  to  drive  away  the 
garrisons  of  Antigonus. 

19.  In  the  meantime  Herod's  fortunes  in  Judea  were  not  in  a 
^f°hi-s^  favorable  condition.  He  had  left  his  brother  Joseph  with 
broUier  full  authority,  but  had  commanded  him  to  make  no  attacks 
(fyo'      against  Antigonus  until  his  return.     But  as  soon  as  Joseph 

280 


THE  FRUITLESS  STRUGGLE  AGAINST  ROME 

heard  that  his  brother  was  at  a  great  distance,  he  disregarded 
the  command  he  had  received  and  marched  toward  Jericho 
with  five  cohorts.  But  when  his  enemies  attacked  him  in 
the  mountains  and  in  a  place  where  it  was  difficult  to  pass, 
he  was  killed  as  he  was  fighting  bravely  in  the  battle,  and  all 
the  Roman  cohorts  were  destroyed. 

Now  near  the  end  of  winter  Herod  marched  to  Jerusalem  20.  Ad- 
and  brought  his  army  up  to  its  wall.     This  was  the  third  a|;ai'nst 
year  after  he  had  been  made  king  at  Rome.     So  he  pitched  ^^^^^^ 
his  camp  before  the  temple,  for  on  that  side  it  might  be  be-  («■ ") 
sieged  and  there  Pompey  had  formerly  captured  the  city. 
Accordingly  he  divided  the  work  among  the  army  and  laid 
waste  the  suburbs,  and  gave  orders  to  raise  three  mounds 
and  to  build  towers  upon  these  mounds.     But  he  himself 
went  to  Samaria  to  marry  the  daughter  of  Alexander,  the  son 
of  Aristobulus,   who  had  been  betrothed  to  him  before. 
And  when  he  was  thus  married,  he  came  back  to  Jerusalem 
with  a  greater  army. 

Now  the  multitude  of  the  Jews  who  were  in  the  city  were  21. 
divided  into  several  factions.     For  the  people  that  crowded  ure*" 
about  the  temple,  being  the  weaker  party,  became  fanatical  f^^^^l^ 
and  raved  wildly  over  the  situation.     But  some  of  the  bolder  city  ^^ 
men  gathered  together  in  companies,  and  began  robbing  in  L) 
many  different  ways  and  especially  plundering  the  provisions 
that  were  about  the  city,  so  that  no  food  was  left  over  for  the 
horses  or  the  men.     After  a  siege  of  five  months  some  of 
Herod's  chosen  men  ventured  upon  the  wall  and  fell  into  the 
city.     They  first  captured  the  environs  of  the  temple,  and  as 
the  army  poured  in  there  was  a  slaughter  of  vast  multitudes 
everywhere,  on  account  of  the  rage  in  which  the  Romans 
were  because  of  the  length  of  the  siege,  and  because  the  Jews 
who  were  about  Herod  were  eager  that  none  of  their  oppo- 
nents should  remain.     Thereupon  Herod  made  those  who 
were  on  his  side  still  more  his  friends  by  the  honors  he  con- 
ferred upon  them;  but  those  of  Antigonus's  party  he  slew. 

I.  The  Fruitless  Struggle  against  Rome.  The  first  quarter  cen- 
tury of  Roman  rule  was  in  many  ways  the  most  complex  in  Israel's 
intricate  history.  There  were  three  chief  actors  in  the  drama:  (1) 
Rome,  represented  first  by  the  leaders  of  the  Republic  and  later  by 

281 


THE  RISE   OF  THE  HERODIAN  HOUSE 

Pompey,  Csesar,  and  their  successors;  (2)  the  popular  Jewish  party  led 
by  Aristobulus  and  his  son  Alexander,  and  Antigonus;  and  (3)  Antip- 
ater,  supported  by  his  able  sons  Phasselus  and  Herod.  Rome's  gen- 
eral policy  was  to  allow  the  Jews  as  much  freedom  as  possible,  but  above 
all  to  hold  Palestine  under  firm  control,  for  it  lay  on  the  eastern  border 
and  faced  Parthia,  the  one  foe  that  had  successfully  defied  the  powerful 
mistress  of  the  Mediterranean.  The  popular  Jewish  party  bitterly  re- 
sented Rome's  interference.  True,  the  Pharisees  welcomed  the  relief 
from  civil  war,  but  they  could  not  hold  the  majority  of  the  people  in 
leash.  The  inoffensive  Hyrcanus  was  left  in  possession  of  the  high- 
priesthood  and  from  time  to  time  was  elevated  to  positions  of  nominal 
civil  authority,  but  he  was  little  more  than  the  plaything  of  circumstance 
and  party  intrigue.  The  ambitions  of  Aristobulus  and  his  sons  kept 
Palestine  in  a  state  of  constant  political  ferment.  Three  times  in  five 
years  they  stirred  the  Jews  to  rebellion  against  Rome.  The  first  rebel- 
lion was  in  57  B.C.  and  was  led  by  Alexander.  He  was  ultimately  driven 
by  the  Roman  general  to  Alexandria,  the  fortress  that  overlooks  the 
middle-Jordan  Valley,  and  was  finally  forced  to  surrender.  The  three 
great  fortressses,  Alexandria,  Macheerus,  and  Hyrcanium,  were  thrown 
down,  and  the  Jewish  state  was  divided  into  five  districts.  Each  of 
these  was  under  a  local  council  consisting  of  the  leading  citizens.  These 
reported  directly  to  the  Roman  proconsul.  To  neutralize  still  further 
the  Jewish  national  spirit,  the  Hellenic  cities  in  and  about  Palestine  were 
restored,  given  a  large  measure  of  independence,  and  placed  directly 
under  the  control  of  Rome's  representative  in  the  East. 

The  second  rebellion  followed  quickly  and  was  led  by  Aristobulus. 
He  was  soon  obliged,  however,  to  take  refuge  in  the  fortress  of  Machserus, 
east  of  the  Dead  Sea,  w^here  he  w-as  captured  and  sent  back  again  as  a 
captive  to  Rome.  The  third  rebellion  was  led  by  Alexander.  It  was 
more  formidable,  and  in  the  end  more  disastrous,  for  the  Jews  were 
signally  defeated  in  a  battle  near  Mount  Tabor.  The  only  permanent 
results  of  these  uprisings  were  the  intensifying  of  Jewish  hatred  of 
Roman  rule  and  the  increasing  of  Rome's  suspicion  of  this  rebellious 
people.  It  was  this  suspicion  that  made  it  possible  for  the  high-priestly 
party  at  a  later  time  to  force  the  Roman  governor  Pilate  to  put  to  death 
one  whom  he  recognized  to  be  an  inoffensive  Galilean  peasant  simply 
because  he  was  accused  of  having  assumed  the  historic  tide,  King  of 
the  Jews. 

II.  Antipater's  Policy.  Through  the  troublesome  first  quarter- 
century  of  Roman  rule  Antipater  and  his  family  prospered  because  they 

2S2 


ANTIPATER'S   POLICY 

were  able  at  every  turn  in  the  political  fortunes  of  Syria  to  make  them- 
selves increasingly  useful  to  Rome.  At  many  critical  periods  he  was 
able  to  save  the  Jews  from  calamity  and  to  secure  for  them  valuable 
privileges.  There  is  a  certain  basis  for  Josephus's  over-enthusiastic 
assertion  that  he  was  "a  man  distinguished  for  his  piety,  justice,  and 
love  of  his  country"  (Ant.  XIV,  11"=). 

Although  Hyrcanus  was  but  a  tool  in  Antipater's  hands,  he  never  at- 
tempted to  depose  him,  and  apparently  always  treated  him  with  respect. 
To  steer  successfully  through  the  stormy  period  during  which  Rome 
made  the  transition  from  the  republican  to  the  monarchical  form  of 
government  was  a  difficult  task.  When  Crassus  came  as  the  represent- 
ative of  the  First  Triumvirate,  Antipater's  gifts  and  tact  were  not  suffi- 
cient to  prevent  the  Roman  from  plundering  the  treasures  of  the  temple. 
Fortunately  for  the  peace  of  Judea,  during  the  civil  war  that  followed 
between  Pompey  and  Caesar,  the  deposed  Jewish  king  Aristobulus  and 
his  son  Alexander  were  both  put  to  death.  After  the  decisive  battle  of 
Pharsalia  in  48  B.C.  Antipater  quickly  espoused  the  cause  of  Caesar, 
and  performed  valuable  services  for  him  at  a  time  when  the  great  Roman 
■was  threatened  by  overwhelming  forces.  By  his  influence  with  the 
people  of  Syria  and  Egypt  and  by  his  personal  acts  of  bravery  he  won 
the  favors  that  Caesar  heaped  upon  him  and  upon  the  Jewish  people. 
The  old  territorial  division  instituted  by  Gabinius  was  abolished,  Hyr- 
canus was  confirmed  in  the  high-priesthood,  and  Antipater  was  made 
procurator  of  Judea.  Joppa  was  restored  to  the  Jewish  state,  the  geru- 
sia,  the  chief  assembly  of  the  Jews,  was  given  certain  of  its  old  judicial 
rights,  and  permission  was  granted  to  rebuild  the  wall  of  Jerusalem. 
The  Jews  were  also  freed  from  the  duty  of  supporting  Roman  soldiers 
and  of  serving  the  Roman  legions.  The  tribute  was  also  in  part  re- 
mitted on  the  sabbatical  year,  and  the  Jews  of  Palestine  and  throughout 
the  Roman  Empire  were  confirmed  in  their  religious  privileges.  Thus 
Caesar  proved  himself  a  friend  of  the  Jews  and  established  precedents 
to  which  they  frequently  appealed  in  later  crises. 

in.  Herod's  Early  Record.  Among  the  many  rewards  conferred 
upon  Antipater  w^as  the  appointment  of  his  son  Phasaelus  as  governor 
of  Jerusalem  and  his  younger  son  Herod  as  governor  of  Galilee.  Thus 
while  still  a  young  man  Herod  was  given  an  opportunity  to  demonstrate 
his  ability  and  energy.  He  at  once  took  measures  to  put  down  the 
robber  bands  that  infested  Galilee,  and  executed  their  leader,  Hezekias. 
He  won  thereby  the  gratitude  of  the  Galileans  and  the  approval  of  Rome. 
Hyrcanus  and  the  sanhedrin  at  Jerusalem,  however,  viewed  this  as- 

283 


THE  RISE  OF  THE  HERODIAN  HOUSE 

sumption  of  authority  with  suspicion  and  alarm.  When  Herod  was 
summoned  before  them,  he  appeared  in  full  military  armor  and  was 
accompanied  by  a  military  following.  Provoked  by  his  boldness,  the 
sanhedrin  would  have  sentenced  him  to  death  had  not  the  local  Roman 
governor  interfered.  The  action  of  the  sanhedrin  aroused  Herod's 
spirit  of  revenge,  and  before  long,  gathering  his  forces,  he  marched 
against  Jerusalem  and  would  have  put  to  death  the  Jewish  leaders  had 
not  his  father  dissuaded  him. 

The  assassination  of  Cfesar  in  44  B.C.,  followed  by  the  battle  of  Phi- 
lippi  in  42,  changed  the  political  horizon  of  Palestine.  Antipater  and 
his  sons,  however,  following  their  usual  policy,  pledged  in  succession 
their  loyalty  to  Cassius  and  Antony,  with  the  result  that  greater  honors 
were  conferred  upon  them.  It  was  at  this  crisis  that  Malichus,  a  certain 
Jewish  noble,  inspired  by  jealousy  and  suspicion,  treacherously  mur- 
dered his  rival,  Antipater.  Herod  retaliated  by  instigating  the  assassi- 
nation of  the  murderer,  but  soon  a  series  of  calamities  swept  over  Judea 
which  threatened  to  obliterate  completely  the  house  of  Antipater. 

IV.  The  Parthian  Conquest.  During  the  struggle  between  Antony 
and  the  assassins  of  Julius  Csesar  Rome's  eastern  outposts  were  left 
exposed.  Their  old  foes,  the  Parthians,  improved  this  opportunity  to 
seize  northern  Syria.  Encouraged  by  the  presence  of  the  Parthians, 
Antigonus,  the  younger  son  of  Aristobulus,  in  41  B.C.  entered  Palestine. 
With  the  aid  of  the  Parthians  and  of  the  Jews  who  were  opposed  to 
Herod  he  ultimately  succeeded  in  establishing  himself  as  king.  Antip- 
ater and  Herod's  brother  Phaseelus  became  the  victims  of  the  Parthian 
treachery,  and  Herod  after  many  adventures  succeeded  in  escaping  with 
his  family  to  the  strong  fortress  of  Masada  at  the  southwestern  end  of 
the  Dead  Sea.  Leaving  them  under  the  care  of  his  brother  Joseph, 
Herod  after  many  discouragements  and  vicissitudes  finally  found  his 
way  to  Rome.  Unfortunately  for  the  cause  of  Jewish  independence,  An- 
tigonus lacked  the  essential  qualities  of  leadership.  Instead  of  arous- 
ing the  loyalty  of  his  subjects  his  chief  concern  was  to  take  vengeance 
upon  Herod's  followers  and  upon  all  who  had  supported  the  house  of 
Antipater. 

V.  Herod  Made  King  of  the  Jews.  Herod  went  to  Rome  to  urge 
the  appointment  of  Aristobulus  III,  the  grandson  of  Hyrcanus  and  the 
brother  of  Herod's  betrothed  wife  Mariamne,  as  king  of  Judea.  Antony 
and  Octavian,  to  whom  he  appealed,  were  rightly  suspicious  of  the  sur- 
vivors of  the  Maccabean  house  and  appreciative  of  the  services  of 
Herod  and  his  father  Antipater.    Therefore,  to  his  complete  surprise, 

284 


HEROD  MADE  KING  OF  THE  JEWS 

they  offered  him  the  kingship,  and  their  nomination  was  speedily  con- 
firmed by  the  senate.  History  presents  no  stranger  nor  more  dramatic 
sight  than  Herod,  the  Idumean,  accompanied  by  Antony  and  Octavian, 
going  to  the  temple  of  Jupiter  on  the  CapitoHne  Hill  to  offer  sacrifices 
in  connection  with  his  assumption  of  the  historic  title,  King  of  the  Jews. 
At  first  it  was  an  empty  title,  but  the  energy  of  Herod  and  the  resources 
of  Rome  sufficed  in  time  to  make  it  real.  In  the  spring  of  39  B.C.  Herod 
landed  at  Ptolemais  and  with  the  apathetic  aid  of  the  Roman  generals 
in  Palestine  began  to  organize  the  Jews  who  rallied  about  him.  March- 
ing down  the  Mediterranean  coast,  he  succeeded  at  last  in  relieving  his 
family,  who  were  besieged  at  Masada.  Idumea  and  Galilee  were  then 
brought  into  subjection,  and  after  two  years  of  fighting  he  won  an  im- 
portant battle  at  Isana,  a  little  north  of  Bethel,  which  gave  him  posses- 
sion of  all  of  Judea  except  Jerusalem.  The  final  contest  for  the  capital 
city  continued  through  several  months,  for  Antigonus  and  his  followers 
realized  that  they  could  expect  litde  mercy  from  Herod  and  the  Romans. 
Thousands  of  Jews  were  slaughtered,  but  at  last  the  temple  itself  was 
captured,  and  Herod  was  in  fact  as  well  as  in  name  King  of  the  Jews. 
Antigonus  pled  in  vain  for  mercy.  Departing  from  their  usual  policy 
of  clemency  toward  native  rulers,  the  Romans  caused  him  first  to 
be  scourged  as  a  common  criminal  and  then  ignominiously  beheaded. 
Thus  the  jVIaccabean  dynasty,  which  had  risen  in  glory,  went  down  in 
shame,  a  signal  illustration  of  the  eternal  principle  that  selfish  ambitions 
and  unrestrained  passions  in  an  individual  or  family  sooner  or  later 
bring  disgrace  and  destruction.  ^Miile  the  siege  of  Jerusalem  was  still 
in  progress,  Herod  went  north  to  Samaria  and  there  consummated  his 
long-delayed  marriage  with  Mariamne,  the  daughter  of  HjTcanus,  thus 
in  part  attracting  to  himself  the  loyalty  which  the  Jews  had  bestowed 
so  lavishly  and  disastrously  upon  the  unworthy  sons  of  Alexander 
Janneus. 

§  CXVIII.     HEROD'S  POLICY  AND  REIGN 

Now  when  the  war  about  Actium  broke  out,  Herod  pre-  i. 

pared  to  come  to  the  assistance  of  Antony,  but  he  was  loyaUy 

treacherously  hindered  from  sharing  the  dangers  of  Antony  \°^^- 

by  Cleopatra,  for  she  persuaded  Antony  to  intrust  the  war  'Jos. 

against  the  Arabians  to  Herod.     This  plan,  however,  proved  war.  i. 

of  advantage  to  Herod,  for  he  defeated  the  army  of  the  Ara-  "'•  ""^ 
bianSf  although  it  offered  him  strong  resistance. 

285 


HEROD'S  POLICY  AND  REIGN 

2.  His        Now  Herod  was  immediately  concerned  about  his  entire 
before^   fortunes  because  of  his  friendship  with  Antony,  who  had 
"u" tus     ^^^^  defeated  at  Actium  by  Caesar  [Augustus].     Herod,  how- 
UO')"^    ever,  resolved  to  face  the  danger:  so  he  sailed  to  Rhodes 
where  Caesar  was  then  staying,  and  came  to  him  without  his 
diadem  and  in  the  dress  and  guise  of  a  private  person,  but  in 
the  spirit  of  a  king.     And  he  concealed  nothing  of  the  truth, 
but  spoke  straight  out  as  follows:   "0  Cassar,  I  was  made 
king  of  the  Jews  by  Antony.     I  confess  that  I  have  been  use- 
ful to  him,  nor  will  I  conceal  this  added  fact,  that  you  would 
certainly  have  found  me  in  arms,  and  so  showing  my  grati- 
tude to  him,  had  not  the  Arabians  hindered  me.     I  have 
been  overcome  with  Antony,  and  sharing  the  same  fortune 
as  his,  I  have  laid  aside  my  diadem.     Now  I  have  come  to  you 
fixing  my  hopes  of  safety  upon  your  virtue,  and  I  ask  that 
you  will  consider  how  faithful  a  friend,  and  not  whose  friend, 
I  have  been." 
3. The        Cassar  answered  him  as  follows:  "Nay,  you  shall  not  only 
fi?ma-     be  safe,  but  you  shall  reign  more  firmly  than  before,  for  you 
tion  of    are  worthy  to  reign  over  many  subjects  because  of  the  stead- 
thority    fastness  of  your  friendship.     Endeavor  to  be  equally  con- 
^^^         stant  in  your  friendship  to  me  in  the  hour  of  my  success, 
since  I  have  the  brightest  hopes  because  of  your  noble  spirit. 
I  therefore  assure  you  that  I  will  confirm  the  kingdom  to 
you  by  decree.     I  will  also  endeavor  to  do  you  some  further 
kindness  hereafter,  that  you  may  not  miss  Antony." 
4.  After  this,  when  Caesar  went  to  Egypt  through  Syria, 

hoifo^rl  Herod  received  him  lavishly  and  royally.  It  was,  therefore, 
^^j.<|ij  the  opinion  both  of  Caesar  and  his  soldiers  that  Herod's 
tory  kingdom  was  too  small  a  return  for  what  he  had  done.  For 
this  reason,  when  Caesar  had  returned  from  Egypt,  he  added 
to  Herod's  other  honors,  and  also  made  an  addition  to  his 
kingdom  by  giving  him  not  only  the  country  which  had  been 
taken  from  him  by  Cleopatra,  but  also  Gadara,  Hippos,  and 
Samaria,  and  also  the  coast  cities  Gaza,  Anthedon,  Joppa, 
and  Straton's  Tower.  He  also  made  him  a  present  of 
four  hundred  Gauls  as  a  body-guard,  which  had  before 
belonged  to  Cleopatra.  Moreover  he  added  to  his  king- 
dom Trachonitis  and  the  adjacent  Batanea,  and  the  district 
of  Auranitis. 

286 


(ob-4a) 


HEROD'S  POLICY   .AND  REIGN 

Now  Herod  had  a  body  suited  to  his  soul  and  was  ever  a  5. 
most  excellent  hunter,  in  which  sport  he  generally  had  great  fer"^'^ 
success  owing  to  his  skill  in  riding,  for  in  one  day  he  once  ""'^^l^ 
captured  forty  wild  beasts.     He  was  also  a  warrior  such  as  ties  '* 
could  not  be  withstood.     Many  also  marvelled  at  his  skill  in  ^^'"^ 
his  exercises  when  they  saw  him  throwing  the  javelin  and 
shooting  the  arrow  straight  to  the  mark.     In  addition  to 
these  advantages  of  mind  and  body,  fortune  was  also  very 
favorable  to  him,  for  he  seldom  failed  in  war,  and  when  he 
failed,  he  was  not  himself  the  cause,  but  it  happened  either 
through  the  treachery  of  some  one  or  else  through  the  rash- 
ness of  his  own  soldiers. 

Herod  also  built  for  himself  at  Jerusalem  in  the  upper  6. 
city  a  palace,  which  contained  two  very  large  and  most  beau-  Ingl^ai 
tiful  apartments  to  which  not  even  the  temple  could  be  ^,°,™;^ 
compared.     One  apartment  he  named  Caesareum  and  the  and 
other  Agrippeum  [after  his  friends  Csesar  Augustus  and  ouUus 
Agrippa].     But  he  did  not  preserve  their  memory  by  par-  ^i^^\^ 
ticular  buildings  only  and  the  names  given  them,  but  his  Honor 
generosity  also  went  as  far  as  entire  cities.     For  when  he  had  Justus 
built  a  most  beautiful  wall  over  two  miles  long  about  a  city  ^"^  '"^ 
in  the  district  of  Samaria  and  had  brought  six  thousand  in- 
habitants into  it  and  had  allotted  to  them  a  most  fertile  ter- 
ritory and  in  the  midst  of  this  city  had  erected  a  large  temple 
to  Augustus,  he  called  the  city  Sebaste  [from  Sebastus,  the 
Greek  of  Augustus].     And  when  Augustus  had  bestowed  upon 
him  additional  territory,  he  built  there  also  a  temple  of  white 
marble  in  his  honor  near  the  fountains  of  the  Jordan.     The 
place  is  called  Panium.     The  king  erected  other  buildings 
at  Jericho  and  named  them  after  the  same  friends.     In  gen- 
eral there  was  not  any  place  in  his  kingdom  suited  to  the 
purpose  that  was  allowed  to  remain  without  something  in 
Augustus's  honor. 

And  when  he  observed  that  there  was  a  city  by  the  sea-  j^Cx. 
side  that  was  much  decayed,  called  Straton's  Tower,  and  that  by'^thc 
the  place,  because  of  its  fair  situation,  was  capable  of  great  "^t^.^^^ 
improvements,  through  his  love  of  honor  he  rebuilt  it  all 
of  white  stone  and  adorned  it  with  magnificent  palaces  and 
in  it  showed  his  natural  munificence.     For  all  the  seashore 
between  Dora  and  Egypt  (between  which  places  the  city  is 
situated)  had  no  good  harbor,  so  that  every  one  who  sailed 

287 


HEROD'S  POLICY  AND  REIGN 

to  Phcenicia  from  Egypt  was  obliged  to  toss  about  in  the  sea 
because  of  the  south  wind  that  threatened  them.  But  the 
king  by  great  expense  and  liberality  overcame  nature  and 
built  a  harbor  larger  than  was  the  Pirasus,  and  in  its  recesses 
built  other  deep  roadsteads.  He  let  down  stones  into  one 
hundred  and  twenty-one  feet  of  water.  And  when  the  part 
below  the  sea  was  filled  up,  he  extended  the  wall  which  was 
already  above  the  sea  until  it  was  two  hundred  feet  long. 
The  entrance  to  the  harbor  was  on  the  north,  because  the 
north  wind  was  there  the  most  gentle  of  all  the  winds.  At 
the  mouth  of  the  harbor  on  each  side  were  three  colossi  sup- 
ported by  pillars.  And  the  houses,  also  built  of  white  stone, 
were  close  to  the  harbor,  and  the  narrow  streets  of  the  city 
led  down  to  it,  being  built  at  equal  distances  from  one  another. 
And  opposite  the  entrance  of  the  harbor  upon  an  elevation 
was  the  temple  of  Caesar  Augustus,  excellent  both  for  beauty 
and  size,  and  in  it  was  a  colossal  statue  of  Caesar  Augustus 
as  big  as  the  Olympian  Zeus,  which  it  was  made  to  resemble, 
and  a  statue  of  Rome  as  big  at  that  of  Hera  at  Argos.  And 
he  dedicated  the  city  to  the  province,  and  the  harbor  to  those 
who  sailed  there.  But  the  honor  of  founding  the  city  he 
ascribed  to  Caesar  Augustus  and  accordingly  called  it  Caesa- 
rea.  He  also  built  other  edifices,  the  amphitheater,  the 
theater,  and  market-place  in  a  manner  worthy  of  that 
name. 

Herod  was  also  a  lover  of  his  father,  for  he  built  as  a 
memorial  of  his  father  a  city  in  the  finest  plain  that  was  in 
his  kingdom  [the  lower  Jordan  valley],  which  had  rivers  and 
trees  in  abundance,  and  called  it  Antipatris.  He  also  forti- 
fied a  citadel  that  lay  above  Jericho  and  was  very  strong  and 
handsome,  and  dedicated  it  to  his  mother,  and  called  it 
Cypros.  Moreover,  he  dedicated  a  tower  at  Jerusalem  to  his 
brother  Phasaelus.  He  also  built  another  city  in  the  val- 
ley which  leads  north  from  Jericho  and  named  it  Phasaelis. 
As  a  memorial  for  himself  he  built  a  fortress  upon  a  moun- 
tain toward  Arabia  and  called  it  after  himself  Herodium. 

And  when  he  had  built  so  much,  he  showed  the  greatness 
of  his  soul  to  many  foreign  cities.  He  built  gymnasiums  at 
Tripolis,  Damascus,  and  Ptolemais.  He  built  a  wall  around 
Byblus,  and  arcades,  colonnades,  temples,  and  market- 
places at  Berytus  and  Tyre,  and  theaters  at  Sidon  and  Da- 

288 


HEROD'o  POLICY  AND  REIGN 

mascus.  He  also  built  an  aqueduct  for  those  Laodiceans, 
who  lived  by  the  seaside ;  and  for  the  inhabitants  of  Asca- 
lon  he  built  baths  and  costly  fountains,  as  also  encircling 
colonnades  that  were  admirable  for  their  workmanship  and 
size. 

Herod,  however,  began  to  be  unhappy  on  account  of  his  lo.  Hie 
wife,  of  whom  he  was  very  fond.     For  when  he  attained  the  Mari-° 
kingship,  he  divorced  her  whom  he  had  married  when  he  ^^!i% 
was  a  private  person,  a  native  of  Jerusalem  by  the  name  of  ="^) 
Doris,  and  married  Mariamne,  the  daughter  of  Alexander, 
the  son  of  Aristobulus.     Because  of  Mariamne  disturbances 
arose  in  his  family,  and  that  very  soon,  but  chiefly  after  his 
return  from  Rome.     For  the  sake  of  his  sons  by  Mariamne 
he  banished  Antipater,  the  son  of  Doris.     After  this  he  slew 
his  wife's  grandfather,  Hyrcanus,  when  he  returned  to  him 
out  of  Parthia,  on  suspicion  of  plotting  against  him.     Now  of 
the  five  children  which  Herod  had  by  Mariamne  two  of  them 
were  daughters  and  three  were  sons.     The  youngest  of  these 
sons  died  while  he  was  being  educated  at  Rome,  but  the  two 
elder  sons  he  treated  as  princes  because  of  their  mother's 
honorable  rank  and  because  they  had  been  born  after  he 
became  king.     But  what  was  stronger  than  all  this  was  the 
love  he  bore  to  Mariamne. 

But  Mariamne's  hatred  toward  him  was  as  great  as  his  n.Hia 
love  for  her.     She,  indeed,  had  a  just  cause  for  indignation  j^fJJ^, 
for  what  he  had  done,  while  her  freedom  of  speech  was  the  and^ 
result  of  his  affection  for  her.     So  she  openly  reproached  him  mTrder 
for  what  he  had  done  to  her  grandfather  Hyrcanus  and  to  ^l^^i- 
her  brother  Aristobulus.     For  he  had  not  spared  this  Aristo-  amne 
bulus,  though  he  was  but  a  lad,  for  after  he  had  given  him 
the  high  priesthood  at  the  age  of  seventeen,  Herod  caused 
him  to  be  slain  immediately  after  he  had  conferred  that 
honor  upon  him ;  for  when  Aristobulus  had  put  on  the  holy 
garments  and  had  approached  to  the  altar  at  a  festival,  the 
assembled  multitude  wept  for  joy.     Thereupon  the  lad  was 
sent  by  night  to  Jericho,  and  there  in  a  swimming-pool  at 
Herod's  command  was  held  under  water  by  the  Gauls  until 
he  was  drowned.     For  these  reasons  Mariamne  reproached 
Herod,  and  railed  at  his  sister  and  his  mother  most  abusively. 
He  was  dumb  on  account  of  his  affection  for  her,  but  the 

289 


HEROD'S  POLICY  AND  REIGN 

women  were  vexed  exceedingly  at  her  and  charged  her  with 
being  false  to  him,  for  they  thought  that  this  would  be  most 
likely  to  arouse  Herod's  anger.  When,  therefore,  he  was 
about  to  take  a  journey  abroad,  he  intrusted  his  wife  to 
Joseph,  his  sister  Salome's  husband.  He  also  gave  him  a 
secret  injunction  that,  if  Antony  should  slay  him  [Herod], 
Joseph  should  slay  Mariamne.  But  Joseph  without  any 
evil  intention  and  in  order  to  demonstrate  the  king's  love 
for  his  wife  disclosed  this  secret  to  her.  And  when  Herod 
came  back,  and  when  they  talked  together,  he  confirmed  his 
love  to  her  by  many  oaths  and  assured  her  that  he  had  never 
loved  any  other  woman  as  he  had  her.  "To  be  sure,"  said 
she,  "you  proved  your  love  to  me  by  the  injunctions  you 
gave  Joseph  when  you  commanded  him  to  kill  me ! "  .When 
Herod  heard  that  this  secret  was  discovered,  he  was  like  a 
distracted  man,  and  said  that  Joseph  would  never  have  dis- 
closed his  injunction  unless  he  had  seduced  her.  Made  in- 
sane by  his  passion  and  leaping  out  of  bed,  he  ran  about  the 
palace  in  a  wild  manner.  Meantime  his  sister  Salome  im- 
proved the  opportunity  for  false  accusations  and  to  confirm 
the  suspicion  about  Joseph.  So  in  his  ungovernable  jealousy 
and  rage  Herod  commanded  both  of  them  to  be  slain  im- 
mediately. But  as  soon  as  his  passion  was  over,  he  repented 
for  what  he  had  done ;  and  indeed  his  passionate  desire  for 
Mariamne  was  so  ardent  that  he  could  not  think  that  she 
was  dead,  but  in  his  distress  he  talked  to  her  as  if  she  were 
still  alive. 

12.  His  Now  Mariamne's  sons  inherited  their  mother's  hate ;  and 
when  they  considered  the  greatness  of  Herod's  crime  toward 
her,  they  were  as  suspicious  of  their  father  as  of  an  enemy. 

amne's    This   State   of  theirs  increased  as  they  grew  to  be  men. 

(23^^.  d.  And  when  Herod  had  been  poisoned  with  calumnies  against 
)  them,  he  recalled  Antipater,  his  son  by  Doris,  from  exile  as 
a  defence  against  his  other  sons,  and  began  to  treat  him 
in  every  way  with  more  distinction  than  them.  But  these 
sons  were  not  able  to  bear  this  change,  for  v/hen  they  saw 
Antipater,  who  was  the  son  of  a  private  woman,  advanced, 
the  nobility  of  their  own  birth  made  them  unable  to  re- 
strain their  indignation.  For  Antipater  was  already  publicly 
named  in  his  father's  will  as  his  successor.     The  two  weapons 

200 


6US; 

picions 

of 

Man 


2*,  c-Snt 


HEROD'S  POLICY  AND  REIGN 

which  he  employed  against  his  brothers  were  flattery  and 
calumny,  whereby  he  brought  matters  privately  to  such  a 
point  that  the  king  thought  of  putting  his  sons  to  death. 
So  Herod  dragged  Alexander  with  him  as  far  as  Rome  and 
charged  him  before  Augustus  with  attempting  to  poison 
him,  but  Alexander  very  ably  cleared  himself  of  the  calum- 
nies laid  against  him  and  brought  Augustus  to  the  point  of 
rejecting  the  accusation  and  of  reconciling  Herod  to  his  sons 
at  once.  After  this  the  king  returned  from  Rome  and  seemed 
to  have  acquitted  his  sons  of  these  charges,  but  still  he  was 
not  without  some  suspicion  of  them,  for  Antipater,  who  was 
the  cause  of  the  hatred,  accompanied  them.  But  he  did  not 
openly  show  his  enmity  toward  them,  for  he  stood  in  awe  of 
the  one  who  had  reconciled  them.  But  the  dissensions  be- 
tween the  brothers  still  accompanied  them,  and  the  suspicions 
they  had  of  one  another  grew  worse. 

Alexander  and  Aristobulus  were  much  vexed  that  the  i3. 
privilege  of  the  first-bom  was  confirmed  to  Antipater,  and 
Antipater  was  very  angry  because  his  brothers  were  to  suc- 
ceed him.     Moreover,  Salome  incited  Herod's  cruelty  against  triguao 
his  sons,  for  Aristobulus  was  desirous  of  bringing  her  who  Herod'i 
was  his  mother-in-law  and  aunt  into  the  same  dangers  as  ^^^,^„'' 
himself.     So  he  sent  to  her  to  advise  her  to  save  herself,  and  27'.  ■^' 
told  her  that  the  king  was  preparing  to  put  her  to  death. 
Then  Salome  came  running  to  the  king  and  informed  him 
of  the  warning.     Thereupon  Herod  could  restrain  himself 
no  longer,  but  caused  both  of  his  sons  to  be  bound,  and 
kept  them  apart  from  one  another,  and  speedily  sent  to  Au- 
gustus written  charges  against  them.     Augustus  was  greatly 
troubled  in  regard  to  the  young  men,  but  he  did  not  think  he 
ought  to  take  from  a  father  the  power  over  his  sons.     So  he 
wrote  back  to  him,  and  gave  him  full  authority  over  his  sons, 
and  said  he  would  do  well  to  make  an  examination  of  the 
plot  by  means  of  a  common  council  consisting  of  his  own 
kinsmen  and  the  governors  of  his  province,  and  if  his  sons 
were  found  guilty  to  put  them  to  death.     With  these  direc- 
tions Herod  complied.     Then  he  sent  his  sons  to  Sebaste  and 
ordered  them  there  to  be  strangled,  and  his  orders  being  exe- 
cuted immediately,  he  commanded  their  bodies  to  be  brought 
to  the  fortress  of  Alexandrium. 

291 


Final 
result 
of  the 
iri- 


6b) 


HEROD'S  POLICY  AND  REIGN 

14.  But  an  unconquerable  hatred  against  Antipater  rose  up 
i^r^"'  in  the  nation  now  that  he  had  an  indisputable  title  to  the 
of  An-  succession,  because  they  well  knew  that  he  was  the  person 
tipater  who  had  contrived  all  the  calumnies  against  his  brothers. 
29?c)'  Later  he  secured  permission  by  means  of  his  Italian  friends 

to  go  and  live  at  Rome.  For  when  they  wrote  that  it  was 
proper  for  Antipater  to  be  sent  to  Augustus  after  some  time, 
Herod  made  no  delay  but  sent  him  with  a  splendid  retinue 
and  a  large  amount  of  money,  and  gave  him  his  testament 
to  carry  in  which  Antipater  was  inscribed  as  king. 

15.  And  after  the  death  of  Herod's  brother  Pheroras,  the  king 
di"ov-^  devoted  himself  to  examining  his  son  Antipater's  steward; 
^ry  of  and  upon  torturing  him  he  learned  that  Antipater  had  sent 
ater's"  for  a  potiou  of  deadly  poison  for  him  from  Egypt,  and  that 
floEf^  the  uncle  of  Antipater  had  received  it  from  him  and  delivered 
^''">       it  to  Pheroras,  for  Antipater  had  charged  him  to  destroy  his 

father  the  king,  while  [Antipater]  was  at  Rome,  and  so  free 
him  from  the  suspicion  of  doing  it  himself.  Antipater's 
freedman  was  also  brought  to  trial,  and  he  was  the  con- 
cluding proof  of  Antipater's  designs.  This  man  came  and 
brought  another  deadly  potion  of  the  poison  of  asps  and  of 
other  serpents,  that  if  the  first  potion  did  not  accomplish  its 
end,  Pheroras  and  his  wife  might  be  armed  with  this  also 
against  the  king. 

16.  Now  Herod's  illness  became  more  and  more  severe  because 
?f^Ai!^-  ^^s  various  ailments  attacked  him  in  his  old  age  and  when 
tipater  he  was  iu  a  melancholy  state,  for  he  was  already  almost 
Herod     seventy  years  of  age  and  was  depressed  by  the  calamities 

that  had  happened  to  him  in  connection  with  his  children, 
so  that  he  had  no  pleasure  in  life  even  when  he  was  in  health. 
The  fact  that  Antipater  was  still  alive  aggravated  his  dis- 
ease, and  he  preferred  to  destroy  him,  not  incidentally  but 
by  crushing  him  completely.  When  letters  came  from  his 
ambassadors  at  Rome  containing  the  information  that  An- 
tipater was  condemned  to  death,  Herod  for  a  little  while  was 
restored  to  cheerfulness;  but  presently  being  overcome  by 
his  pains,  he  endeavored  to  anticipate  destiny,  and  this  be- 
cause he  was  weakened  by  want  of  food  and  by  a  convulsive 
cough.  Accordingly  he  took  an  apple  and  asked  for  a  knife, 
for  he  used  to  pare  his  apples  before  eating  them.    He  then 

292 


(331.  7, 

8a) 


HEROD'S   CHARACTER 

looked  around  to  see  that  there  was  no  one  to  hinder  him 
and  lifted  up  his  right  hand  as  if  to  stab  himself.  But  Achi- 
abus,  his  cousin,  ran  up  to  him  and,  holding  his  hand, 
hindered  him  from  so  doing.  Immediately  a  great  lamenta- 
tion was  raised  in  the  palace,  as  if  the  king  was  dying,  and 
as  soon  as  Antipater  heard  that,  he  took  courage  and  with 
joy  in  his  looks  besought  his  keepers  for  a  sum  of  money  to 
loose  him  and  let  him  go.  But  the  head  keeper  of  the  prison 
not  only  prevented  that  but  also  ran  and  told  the  king  what 
his  design  was.  Thereupon  the  king  cried  louder  than  his 
disease  could  well  bear,  and  immediately  sent  some  of  his 
body-guards  and  had  Antipater  slain.  He  also  gave  orders 
to  have  him  buried  at  Hyrcanium,  and  altered  his  testament 
again  and  therein  made  Archelaus,  his  eldest  son,  and  th« 
brother  of  Antipas,  his  successor,  and  made  Antipas  tetrarch. 
Herod,  after  surviving  the  death  of  his  son  only  five  days, 
died,  having  reigned  thirty-four  years,  since  he  had  obtained 
control  of  afifairs ;  but  it  was  thirty-seven  years  since  he  had 
been  made  king  by  the  Romans. 

I.  Herod's  Character.  The  character  of  Herod  is  comparatively 
easy  to  understand,  for  it  is  elemental  and  one  that  constantly  recurs  in 
history.  We  in  America  are  familiar  with  this  tyj^e  which  is  represented 
by  our  unscrupulous  captains  of  industry  or  political  bosses — energetic, 
physically  strong,  shrewd,  relentless  toward  all  who  threaten  to  thwart 
their  plans,  skilful  in  organization,  not  troubled  about  the  rightness  of 
their  methods,  provided  they  escape  the  toils  of  the  law,  able  to  com- 
mand men  and  successfully  to  carry  through  large  policies.  They  are 
not  without  their  personal  attractions,  for  it  is  instinctive  to  admire  that 
which  is  big  and  able  to  achieve.  Many  of  them  also  make  permanent 
contributions  to  the  upbuilding  of  the  nation.  Oriental  history  is  also 
full  of  analogies:  Nebuchadrezzar,  Cyrus,  Alexander,  and  in  more  re- 
cent times  Mohammed  Ali  of  Egypt.  Herod  was  largely  the  product 
of  his  inheritance  and  training.  His  father,  Antipater,  had  taught  him 
to  regard  the  Jevv's  with  secret  but  well-concealed  contempt,  and  to  hate 
Aristobulus  and  his  ambitious  sons.  His  religion  was  loyalty  to  Rome, 
for  this  meant  wealth  and  success.  He  delighted  in  public  approval, 
and  his  ambition  was  to  be  known  as  a  great  builder.  As  is  true  with 
this  type  of  man,  he  was  a  natural  tyrant.  Power  was  his  ruling  pas- 
sion, and  he  regarded  with  extreme  suspicioij  any  who  might  take  it 

293 


HEROD'S  POLICY  AND  REIGN 

from  hiin."  In  this  respect  the  contemporary  rulers  of  the  Roman  Em< 
pire  set  an  example  v\-hich  he  was  not  slow  to  follow.  His  Idumean  and 
Arabian  blood  coursed  hot  and  fierce  through  his  veins.  It  was  an  age 
when  moral  standards  were  exceedingly  low,  and  Herod  never  learned 
to  I'ule  his  passions.  The  Oriental  institution  of  the  harem  gave  him 
full  license,  and  he  lived  and  loved  as  he  fought  and  reigned — vehe- 
mently. Such  a  man  is  especially  susceptible  to  the  weaknesses  and 
crimes  that  come  from  jealousy,  and  the  influences  of  his  family  and 
court  intensified  these  fatal  faults. 

Herod  is  not  without  his  attractive  quali^ie^  A  man  who  is  able  to 
execute  on  a  large  scale  and  win  the  title  G  "^at  is  never  commonplace. 
In  giving  Palestine  the  benefits  of  a  strong  :  nd  stable  government  he 
performed  a  real  service.  In  his  love  for  Marif^mne  and  for  the  sons  she 
bore  him  he  was  mastered  by  a  passion  that  for  a  time  ennobled  him. 
Like  every  man,  moreover,  who  fails  to  taste  the  joys  of  disinterested 
service  for  his  fellow-men,  Herod  paid  the  bitter  penalty  for  his  own  un- 
restrained selfishness.  He  awakes  pity  rather  than  denunciation.  He 
never  found  life,  because  he  never  learned  Ui  Jose  his  life  in  the  service 
of  his  people. 

II.  His  Attitude  toward  Rome.  Herod's  policy  was  loyalty  at  any 
cost  to  the  man  who  at  the  moment  ruled  Rome.  During  the  first  part 
of  his  reign  Antony's  power  on  the  eastern  Mediterranean  was  still  in 
the  ascendancy.  Notwithstanding  the  poweH'ul  intrigues  of  Cleopatra, 
Herod  succeeded  in  retaining  the  favor  of  his  patron.  When  the  battle 
of  Actium  in  32  B.C.  revealed  Antony's  weakness,  Herod  forthwith  cast 
off  his  allegiance,  and  his  treachery  was  one  of  "he  chief  forces  that  drove 
Antony  to  suicide.  Octavian,  who  henceforth  v  uder  the  title  of  Augustus 
attained  to  the  complete  control  of  Rome,  recogiized  in  Herod  a  valuable 
servant.  Herod's  title  as  king  of  the  Jews  was  confirmed,  and  Augustus 
gradually  increased  his  territory  until  it  included  practically  all  of  Pales- 
tine with  the  exception  of  certain  Greek  cities  along  the  coast  and  east 
of  the  Jordan.  Herod's  task  was  to  preserve  peace  in  the  land  thus  in- 
trusted to  him  and  to  guard  the  eastern  border  of  the  empire  against  its 
Parthian  foes.    This  task  he  faithfully  performed. 

III.  His  Building  Activity.  The  spirit  and  policy  of  Augustus 
were  clearly  reflected  in  Herod's  court  and  kingdom.  When  his  posi- 
tion was  firmly  established,  Herod  devoted  himself  to  magnificent 
building  enterprises.  In  Antioch,  Athens,  and  Rhodes,  he  reared 
great  public  buildings.  Jerusalem,  his  capital,  was  provided  with  a 
theatre  and  amphitheatre,  and  other  buildings  that  characterize  the 

294 


HIS   BUILDING   ACTIVITY 

Greeco-Roman  cities  of  the  period.  The  two  crowning  achievements  of 
Herod's  reign  were  the  rebuilding  of  Samaria  and  Caesarea,  as  its  port 
on  the  Mediterranean  coast.  Both  of  these  cities  were  renamed  in  honor 
of  his  patron  Augustus.  On  the  acropoHs  of  Samaria  he  built  a  huge 
Roman  temple,  the  foundations  of  which  have  recently  been  uncovered 
by  the  American  excavators.  The  city  itself  was  encircled  by  a  colon- 
nade, over  a  mile  long,  consisting  of  pillars  sixteen  feet  in  height.  Cses- 
area,  like  Samaria,  was  adorned  with  magnificent  public  buildings,  in- 
cluding a  temple,  a  theatre,  a  palace,  and  an  amphitheatre.  The  great 
breakwater  two  hundred  feet  wide  that  ran  out  into  the  open  sea  was 
one  of  the  greatest  achievements  of  that  building  age.  By  these  acts 
Herod  won  still  further  the  favor  of  Augustus  and  the  admiration  of  the 
Eastern  world. 

IV.  His  Attitude  toward  His  Subjects.     The  peace  which  Herod 
brought  to  Palestine  was  won  at  the  point  of  the  sword.    The  fear 
which  he  felt  for  his  subjects  was  surpassed  only  by  the  fear  which  he 
inspired  in  them.     He  was  unscrupulous  and  merciless  in  cutting  down 
all  possible  rivals.    The  treacherous  murder  of  Aristobulus  III,  the 
grandson  of  Hyrcanus,  and  last  of  all  the  murder  of  the  inoffensive  and 
maimed  Hyrcanus,  are  among  the  darkest  deeds  in  Herod's  bloody  / 
reign.     The  power  of  the  sanhedrin,  the  Jewish  national  representative^ 
body,  was  almost  completely  crushed.     Following  the  policy  of  Augustus, 
Herod  developed  a  complex  system  of  spies,  or  espionage,  so  that,  like 
an  Oriental  tyrant,  he  ruled  his  subjects  by  means  of  two  armies,  the 
spies  who  watched  in  secret  and  the  soldiers  who  guarded  them  openly.  / 
His  lavish  building^  enterprises  led  him  to  load  his  people  with  an  almost "  /     i 
intolerable  burden  of  taxation,  and  yet  for  the  common  people  Herod's 
reign  was  one  of  comparative  peace  and  prosperity.     At  last  they  were 
delivered  from  destructive  wars  and  free  to  develop  the  great  agricult-  i 
ural  and  commercial  resources  of  the  land.     While  outside  of  Judea  -',*''^ 
Herod  built  heathen  temples,  he  faithfully  guarded  the  temple  of  Jeru-\/     f-  f\ 
galem,  and  was  careful  not  to  override  the  religious  prejudices  of  his 
subjects.    His  measures  to  relieve  their  suffering  in  time  of  famine  re- 
veal a  generosity  which  under  better  en\'ironment  and  training  might  \,jji}\^^ 
have  made  him  a  benign  ruler. 

V.  The  Tragedy  of  His  Domestic  Life.  The  weakness  of  Herod's 
character  is  most  glaringly  revealed  in  his  domestic  life.  Undoubtedly  he 
loved  the  beautiful  Maccabean  princess,  Mariamne,  with  all  the  passion 
of  his  violent  nature.  It  was  a  type  of  love,  however,  which  passes  over 
easily  into  insensate  jealousy.     Accordingly,  when  he  left  Judea  just 

295 


HEROD'S  POLICY  AND  REIGN 

before  the  battle  of  Actium,  and  later  when  he  went  to  meet  Octavian, 
he  had  his  wife  INIariamne  shut  up  in  a  strong  fortress.  Unfortunately 
Herod,  like  most  despots,  was  unable  to  command  the  services  of  loyal 
followers.  The  discovery  of  Herod's  suspicions  toward  her  aroused  the 
imperious  spirit  of  Mariamne.  She  was  also  the  victim  of  the  plots  of 
his  jealous  family.  Human  history  presents  no  greater  tragedy  than 
that  of  Herod  putting  to  death  the  one  woman  whom  he  truly  loved, 
and  later  a  victim  of  his  own  suspicions  and  of  the  intrigues  of  his  son 
Antipater,  finally  obtaining  royal  permission  to  put  to  death  the  two 
noble  sons  whom  Mariamne  had  borne  to  him.  It  is  difficult  to  find  in 
all  history  a  more  pitiable  sight  than  Herod  in  his  old  age,  hated  by 
most  of  his  subjects,  misled  by  the  members  of  his  own  family,  the  mur- 
derer of  those  whom  he  loved  best,  finding  his  sole  satisfaction  in  putting 
to  death  his  son  Antipater,  who  had  betrayed  him,  and  in  planning  in  his 
last  hours  how  he  might  by  the  murder  of  hundreds  of  his  subjects 
arouse  wide-spread  lamentation. 

VL  Effects  of  Herod's  Reign.  One  of  the  chief  results  of  Herod's 
policy  and  reign  was  the  complete  extinction  of  the  Maccabean  house. 
Herod's  motive  and  method  were  thoroughly  base,  but  for  the  Jewish 
people  the  result  was  beneficial,  for  it  removed  one  of  the  most  active 
causes  of  those  suicidal  rebellions  that  had  resulted  disastrously  for  the 
Jews  and  brought  them  under  the  suspicion  and  iron  rule  of  Rome. 
With  his  heavy  hand  Herod  also  put  a  stop  to  the  party  strife  that  had 
undermined  the  native  Jewish  kingdom  and  brought  loss  and  suflfering 
to  thousands  of  Jews.  The  Pharisees  and  Sadducees  at  last  were  taught 
the  lesson  of  not  resorting  to  arms,  however  widely  they  might  differ. 
By  removing  the  Pharisees  from  public  life  Herod  directed  their  ener- 
gies to  developing  their  ceremonial  regulations  and  to  instructing  the 
people.  Thus  the  influence  of  the  Pharisees  became  paramount  with 
the  great  majority  of  the  Jews.  As  Herod  extended  his  rule  over  all 
Palestine,  he  brought  into  close  relations  the  Jews  scattered  through- 
out its  territory  and  so  strengthened  the  bonds  of  race  and  religion.  In 
building  the  temples  he  also  emphasized  the  ceremonial  side  of  their 
religious  life  and  centralized  it  so  that  even  the  Jews  of  the  dispersion 
henceforth  paid  their  yearly  temple  tax,  made  frequent  pilgrimages  to 
Jerusalem,  and  regarded  themselves  as  a  part  of  the  nation.  Further- 
more, Herod  brought  peace  and  prosperity  to  his  people  and  gave  the 
Jews  an  honorable  place  in  the  r6le  of  nations.  Thus,  while  his  career 
is  marked  by  many  unpardonable  crimes,  he  proved  on  the  whole  an 
upbuilder  and  a  friend  rather  than  a  foe  of  the  Jews. 

296 


HEROD'S  TEMPLE 


CXIX.    HEROD'S  TEMPLE 


Now  Herod,  in  the  eighteenth  year  of  his  reign,  undertook  i. 
a  very  great  work,  that  is,  to  rebuild  the  temple  of  God  at  his  E"'^'" 
own  expense,  and  to  make  it  larger  in  circumference  and  to  (Jos, 
raise  it  to  a  more  magnificent  height.     He  thought  rightly  xv,' 
that  to  bring  the  temple  to  perfection  would  be  the  most  "'"^ 
glorious  of  all  his  works,  and  that  it  would  suffice  as  an 
everlasting  memorial. 

So  he  prepared  a  thousand  wagons  to  bring  stones,  chose  2.  His 
ten  thousand  of  the  most  skilful  workmen,  bought  a  thou-  ^afkins 
sand  priestly  garments  for  as  many  of  the  priests,  and  had  ^''^ 
some  of  them  taught  how  to  work  as  builders,  and  others  as 
carpenters.     Then  he  began  to  build,  but  not  until  every- 
thing was  well  prepared  for  the  work. 

And  Herod  took  up  the  old  foundations,  and  laid  others.  3.  Di- 
He  erected  a  temple  upon  these  foundations :  its  length  was  ™ons 
one  hundred  cubits  and  its  height  twenty  additional  cubits,  ^^f^^. 
Now  the  temple  was  built  of  stones  that  were  white  and  tions  of 
strong.     Each   was   about   twenty-five    cubits   long,    eight  lempie 
cubits  high,  and  twelve  cubits  wide.     The  whole   temple  ^^"^ 
enclosure  on  the  sides  was  on  much  lower  ground,  as  were  : 
also  the  royal  colonnades;  but  the  temple  itself  was  much 
higher,   being  visible   for  many  furlongs  in   the   country 
round  about.     It  had  doors  at  its  entrance  as  high  as  the 
temple  itself  with  lintels  over  them.     These  doors  were 
adorned  with  variegated  veils,  into  which  were  interwoven 
pillars  and  purple  flowers.     Over  these,  but  under  the  crown- 
work,  was  spread  out  a  golden  vine,  with  its  branches  hang- 
ing far  down,  the  great  size  and  fine  workmanship  of  which 
was  a  marvel  to  those  who  saw  it. 

Herod  also  built  very  large  colonnades  all  around  the  4.  its 
temple,  making  them  in  proportion.     He  exceeded  all  who  tfon"*^** 
had  gone  before  him  in  his  lavish  expenditure  of  money.  pi"pii^g" 
There  was  a  large  wall  about  the  colonnades.     The  hill,  on  court 
which  the  temple  stood,  was  rocky,  ascending  gradually  to-  ^ 
ward  the  east  of  the  city  to  its  highest  point.     At  the  bottom, 
which  was  surrounded  by  a  deep  valley,  he  laid  rocks  that 
were  bound  together  with  lead.    He  also  cut  away  some  of 

297 


HEROD'S  TEMPLE 


5. 

Tower 
of  An- 
tonia 


6.  The 
temple 
gates 
and 
colon- 
nades 


J 


the  inner  parts,  carrying  the  wall  to  a  great  height,  until  the 
size  and  height  of  the  square  construction  was  immense, 
and  until  the  great  size  of  the  stones  in  front  were  visible 
on  the  outside.  The  inward  parts  were  fastened  together 
with  iron  and  the  joints  were  preserved  immovable  for  all 
time.  When  this  work  was  joined  together  to  the  very  top 
of  the  hill,  he  finished  off  its  upper  surface  and  filled  up  the 
hollow  places  about  the  wall  and  made  it  level  and  smooth 
on  top.  Within  this  wall,  on  the  very  top,  was  another 
wall  of  stone  that  had  on  the  east  a  double  colonnade  of 
the  same  length  as  the  wall.  Inside  was  the  temple  itself. 
This  colonnade  faced  the  door  of  the  temple  and  had 
been  decorated  by  many  kings  before.  Around  about 
the  entire  temple  were  fixed  the  spoils  taken  from  the 
barbarous  nations.  All  these  were  dedicated  to  the  temple 
by  Herod,  who  added  those  that  had  been  taken  from  the 
Arabians. 

Now  in  an  angle  on  the  north  side  of  the  temple  was  built 
a  citadel,  well  fortified  and  of  extraordinary  strength.  This 
citadel  had  been  built  before  Herod  by  the  kings  and  high 
priests  of  the  Hasmonean  race,  and  they  called  it  the  Tower. 
In  it  were  deposited  the  garments  of  the  high  priest,  which 
he  put  on  only  at  the  time  when  he  was  to  offer  sacrifice. 
Herod  fortified  this  tower  more  strongly  than  before,  in 
order  to  guard  the  temple  securely,  and  gave  the  tower  the 
name  of  Antonia  to  gratify  Antony,  who  was  his  friend  and 
^  Roman  ruler. 

In  the  western  side  of  the  temple  enclosure  were  four  gates ; 
one  led  to  the  king's  palace,  two  others  led  to  the  suburbs  of 
the  city,  and  the  fourth  led  by  many  steps  down  into  the  valley 
and  up  on  the  other  side  to  the  entrance  to  the  other  part  of  the 
city.  The  fourth  front  of  the  temple,  that  on  the  south,  had 
gates  in  the  middle;  before  this  front  were  the  three  royal 
colonnades,  which  reached  from  the  valley  on  the  east  to 
that  on  the  west.  These  colonnades  were  especially  remark- 
able for  their  great  height,  which  seemed  more  because 
the  hill  at  their  base  dropped  abruptly  into  a  very  deep 
valley.  There  were  four  rows  of  pillars,  placed  side  by  side. 
The  fourth  was  built  into  the  stone  wall.  Each  pillar  was 
about  twenty-seven  feet  high,  with  a  double  spiral  at  the  base, 

298 


HEROD'S  TEMPLE 


7.  Th« 

inner 

courts 


and  was  so  thick  that  three  men  joining  hands  could  just 
reach  around  it.  The  number  of  the  pillars  was  one  hundred 
and  sixty-two.  The  columns  had  Corinthian  capitals,  which 
aroused  great  admiration  in  those  who  saw  them  because  of 
their  beauty.  These  four  rows  of  pillars  made  three  paral- 
lel spaces  for  walking.  Two  of  these  parallel  walks  were 
thirty  feet  wide,  six  hundred  and  six  feet  in  length,  and 
fifty  feet  in  height,  while  the  middle  walk  was  half  as  wide 
again  and  twice  as  high.  The  roofs  were  adorned  with 
deep  sculptures  in  wood,  representing  many  different  things ; 
the  middle  was  much  higher  than  the  rest,  and  the  front 
wall,  which  was  of  poUshed  stone,  was  adorned  with  beams 
set  into  the  stone  on  pillars. 

The  second  enclosure,  which  was  reached  by  ascending  a 
few  steps,  was  not  very  far  within  the  first.  This  inner  en- 
closure had  a  stone  wall  for  a  partition.  Upon  this  wall  it 
was  forbidden  any  foreigner  to  enter  under  penalty  of  death. 
This  inner  enclosure  had  on  its  northern  and  southern  sides 
three  gates  at  intervals  from  each  other.  On  the  east,  how- 
ever, there  was  one  large  gate,  through  which  those  of  us 
who  were  ceremonially  pure  could  enter  with  our  wives. 
Within  this  enclosure  was  another  forbidden  to  women. 
Still  further  in  there  was  a  third  court,  into  which  only  the 
priest  could  go.  Within  this  court  was  the  temple  itself; 
before  that  was  the  altar,  upon  which  we  offer  sacrifices  and 
burnt-offerings  to  God. 

Herod  himself  took  charge  of  the  work  upon  the  colon- 
nades and  outer  enclosures;  these  he  built  in  eight  years. 
But  the  temple  itself  was  built  by  the  priest  in  a  year  and  tempi. 
five  months.  Thereupon  all  the  people  were  filled  with  joy 
and  returned  thanks,  in  the  first  place  to  God  for  the  speed 
with  which  it  was  finished,  and  in  the  second  place  for  the 
zeal  which  the  king  had  shown.  They  feasted  and  cele- 
brated this  rebuilding  of  the  temple;  the  king  sacrificed 
three  hundred  oxen  to  God,  as  did  the  others,  each  accord- 
ing to  his  ability.  The  time  of  this  celebration  of  the  work 
about  the  temple  also  fell  upon  the  day  of  the  king's  inaugu- 
ration, which  the  people  customarily  observed  as  a  festival. 
The  coincidence  of  these  anniversaries  — -*"  "■^'^  *-o+:„oi 
most  notable. 

299 


9.Dedi- 

cation 
of  the 


made  the  festival 


s^  \l 


HEROD'S  TEMPLE 

I.  Herod's  Motives.     It  is  not  diflSicult  to  appreciate  the  reasons 
_„.^ji^ which  influenced  Herod  to  begin  the  rebuilding  of  the  temple.     Chief 
^«\  W  Y  among  these  was  doubtless  the  desire  to  win  still  further  the  approval 

■^  \  of  his  master  Augustus.     It  is  also  a  characteristic  of  a  man  of  Herod's 

type  to  seek  to  gain  popular  approval  by  the  munificence  of  his  public 
gifts.  Throughout  his  reign  he  was  painfully  aware  of  the  suspicions 
4  of  his  Jewish  subjects.  He  trusted,  and  the  event  proved  the  wisdom 
iL  jj  ■  I  pj  of  his  judgment,  that  he  might  conciliate  them  by  giving  them  that  about 
'  OwV^^  which  their  interest  most  naturally  gathered.  The  methods  which  he 
TYU^'^'^Vi'  employed  in  building  the  temple  clearly  indicate  that  this  was  one  of 
■^  .f  isr  his  leading  motives.    He  also  gratified  that  love  of  construction  which 

^v  S  ..  J  i  had  found  expression  in  many  of  the  cities  of  Palestine  and  the  eastern 
VWL  \ii}y^  ^>  ■  Mediterranean.  He  desired  to  rear  a  great  memorial  for  himself,  and 
Ijrw^  IM,  \j\\y"^'^  in  this  hope  he  was  not  disappointed,  for  later  generations  continued  to 
.  .  j^  A  think  of  him  with  gratitude  because  of  the  temple  which  bore  his  name. 
^'^  II.  Preparations  for  the  Rebuilding  of  the  Temple.     Herod's 

^  ^  temple  was  begun  in  20  or  19  B.C.  and  was  not  entirely  completed  un- 

til a  few  years  before  its  destruction  in  70  a.d.    The  task  in  itself  was  a 
difficult  one,  for  on  the  north  the  city  prevented  the  extension  of  the 
/J  temple  area,  and  on  the  south  the  hill  rapidly  descended  toward  the 
I^LgM/tvs^  juncture  of  the  Tyropoean  and  Kidron  valleys.     Herod  met  the  difficulty 

by  filling  in  to  the  south  with  vast  stone  constructions  which  rose  to  the 
height  of  seventy  to  ninety  feet  above  the  virgin  rock.     To  economize 
(X\t)V^'''^  ^      building  materials  he  built  the  huge  underground  vaults  and  arches 
I  -  joflT         f  known  to-day  as  Solomon's  Stables.    Thus  with  a  vast  expense  of  labor 
^  -J  and  wealth  he  extended  the  temple  area  to  the  south  until  it  was  double 

that  which  surrounded  Solomon's  temple.  It  was  also  important"  to" 
regard  in  every  detail  the  ceremonial  scruples  of  the  Jews.  To  this  end 
a  small  army  of  priests  were  trained  as  masons  and  carpenters  in  order 
to  do  the  work  in  the  immediate  proximity  of  the  temple.  To  bring  the 
ancient  temple  into  proportions  with  the  rest  of  his  buildings,  a  huge 
porch  or  fa9ade  was  reared  in  front  of  it  on  the  east,  rising,  according  to 
Josephus,  to  the  height  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  feet.  For  the  roof 
that  covered  the  porches  he  apparently  brought  cedar  from  the  distant 
Lebanons.  Only  with  all  the  resources  of  the  kingdom  at  his  command 
was  it  possible  to  carry  through  this  vast  enterprise. 

III.  The  Approaches  to  the  Temple.  The  entire  temple  area  was 
rectangular  in  form,  about  twelve  hundred  feet  in  length  and  six  hundred 
feet  wide.  Its  chief  approaches  were  on  the  south  and  west.  A  small 
gate  through  which  sacrificial  animals  were  introduced  'mmediately 

300 


THE  APPROACHES  TO  THE  TEMPLE 

into  the  temple  precincts  opened  from  the  north.  The  one  gate  on  the 
east,  which  opened  into  the  Kidron  Valley,  was  apparently  opposite  the 
eastern  entrance  to  the  temple.  The  two  gates  on  the  south  opened 
toward  the  City  of  David.  The  one  was  a  double  gate  with  an  incline 
leading  into  the  temple  area,  and  the  other  farther  to  the  east  was  a 
triple  gate.  The  main  approaches  were  from  the  west.  The  southern 
of  these  was  a  low  viaduct  spanning  the  Kidron  Valley  and  thence  by 
steps  or  inclined  approach  ascending  to  the  temple  area.  Remnants  of 
the  arches  that  spanned  the  valley  at  this  point  and  a  little  farther  north 
are  still  traceable  on  the  present  walls  of  the  temple  area  far  down  in  the 
Tyropoean  Valley.  The  third  approach  farther  to  the  north  was  prob- 
ably also  a  viaduct  leading  directly  into  the  temple  area,  while  the  ex- 
treme northern  approach,  according  to  Josephus,  led  from  the  palace 
of  Herod  directly  to  the  temple.  The  entire  temple  area  was  encircled 
by  a  colonnade.  One  row  of  pillars  was  built  into  the  high  wall  that 
surrounded  the  area.  On  the  south  was  found  the  royal  porch  with  its 
four  rows  of  columns,  the  first  and  second  about  thirty  feet  apart,  the 
second  and  third  forty-five,  and  the  third  and  fourth  thirty.  The  pillars 
on  the  sides  were  about  twenty-seven  feet  in  height,  while  the  two  rows 
in  the  middle  were  double  this  height.  Each  of  these  colonnades  was 
covered  with  a  richly  ornamented  cedar  roof,  thus  affording  grateful 
shelter  from  the  sun  and  storm.  The  great  space  at  the  south  of  the 
temple  area  was  the  Court  of  the  Gentiles,  the  common  park  of  the  city 
where  all  classes  of  its  population  freely  gathered.  The  colonnade  on 
the  east  of  the  temple  area  bore  the  name  of  Solomon's  Porch,  and  from 
it  the  steps  led  up  to  the  raised  platform  of  native  rock  twenty  or  more 
feet  above  the  Court  of  the  Gentiles.  Somewhere  to  the  east  of  the 
temple  was  found  the  famous  Beautiful  Gate.  The  series  of  steps  led 
into  the  so-called  Court  of  the  Women.  West  of  this  was  the  Court  of 
the  Israelites,  to  which  only  men  were  admitted.  Thence  a  broad,  high 
door  led  to  the  open  space  before  the  temple.  Surrounding  the  altar 
and  cutting  off  approach  to  the  temple  proper  was  a  stone  balustrade. 
The  space  within  this  was  known  as  the  Court  of  the  Priests.  Here  no 
laymen  were  admitted  except  as  the  ritual  of  private  sacrifice  required. 
These  inner  courts  were  surrounded  by  a  high  wall  and  adjoining  cham- 
bers for  the  storing  of  the  paraphernalia  used  in  connection  with  the 
sacrifice  and  for  the  residence  of  the  priests.  On  the  southern  side  of 
the  temple  was  the  room  where  the  national  council,  the  sanhedrin,  held 
its  public  meetings.  Four  gates  on  the  north  and  four  gates  on  the 
south  led  from  the  temple  court  to  the  lower  Court  of  the  Gentiles. 

301 


HEROD'S  TEMPLE 

,    IV.  The  Organization  of  the  Temple  Service.    At  the  bead  o! 
{'kfOd  /the  temple  organization  was  the  high  priest.     Since  the  deposition  of 

\(^od\J^i(Lc}  *^^  ill-fated  Hyrcanus  the  high  priests  had  been  appointed  by  Herod, 
ly    1     /         for  to  them  was  intrusted  large  civil  as  well  as  religious  authority.    The 
*•     v^^r^       one  duty  which  the  high  priests  could  not  neglect,  unless  prevented  by 
Pf  ^\  illness,  was  to  perform  the  sacrifice  in  behalf  of  the  people  and  to  enter 

UTOdCUYVii  y(i5ithe  Holy  of  Holies  on  the  day  of  atonement.     Frequently  he  also  offered 
ViiCfOtMilPV  A^^  sacrifice  or  presided  at  the  special  services  on  the  sabbath,  the  new 
I  .     '      moons,  or  at  the  great  annual  festivals.     Otherwise  the  temple  duties 
vviy  1V£.        were  performed  by  the  army  of  priests  and  assistants  who  were  associ- 
*?-9T'^,  n  ated  with  the  temple.     According  to  Josephus  there  were  twenty  thou- 

sand priests.    They  were  divided  into  twenty-four  courses.     Each  course 
included  certain  priestly  families  to  which  were  intrusted  for  a  week  the 
performing  of  the  sacrifices.     Corresponding  to  the  tv\-enty-four  courses 
of  the  priests  were  the  courses  of  the  people,  who  were  represented  by 
.  certain  of  their  number  at  each  of  the  important  services.    The  priests 
Q^in^j^Q^i  j' not  only  performed  the  sacrifices  but  also  guarded  the  temple  treasures 
X     ^  fO  /    and  the  private  wealth  placed  in  their  keeping.    The  Levites  attended 
y\il  \^sfif<      to  the  more  menial  duties  in  connection  with  the  temple  service.    They 
r  O^^fofV/       aided  the  priests  in  preparing  the  sacrifices  and  in  caring  for  the  utensils 
(  ,,        that  were  used  in  connection  with  the  sacrifice.     Some  of  them  were 

Ti  f  r/in  ly.i      doorkeepers.     Probably  from  the  Levites  were  drafted  the  temple  police 
^ /at  whose  head  was  the  captain  of  the  temple.    Their  task  was  to  pre- 
serv'e  order  and  to  prevent  Gentiles  from  entering  the  sacred  precincts 
_  of  the  temple.    The  singers  constituted  a  third  group  of  Levites. 
f       Two  public  services  were  held  each  day,  the  first,  at  sunrise,  consisted 
\    in  the  offering  of  a  sacrificial  ram  with  the  accompaniment  of  prayer 
'  ffA  and  song.    The  same  rites  were  repeated  at  sunset.     After  the  morning 
-  ,,t  , Cd-    i  sacrifice  the  private  offerings  were  presented.     On  the  sabbaths,  new 
S\>^(\ft(tX  /  moons,  and  great  festivals,  the  number  of  sacrifices  was  greatly  increased 
and  the  ritual  made  more  elaborate.     Upon  the  Jews,  instructed  in  the 
synagogue  in  the  details  of  the  law  and  taught  to  regard  the  temple  and 
its  services  with  deepest  reverence,  the  elaborate  ceremonies  of  this 
great  and  magnificent  sanctuary  must  have  made  a  profound  impres- 
sion.    As  the  people  streamed  up  to  Jerusalem  by  thousands  at  the 
great  feasts,  their  attention  was  fixed  more  and  more  upon  the  ritual 
and  the  truths  which  it  symbolized.     Herod's  temple  also  strengthened 
the  authority  of  the  Jewish  hierarchy  with  the  people,  and  gave  the 
scribes  and  Pharisees  the  commanding  position  which  they  later  occu- 
pied in  the  life  and  thought  of  Judaism. 

302 


THE  MESSIANIC  HOPES 


§  CXX.    THE  MESSIANIC  HOPES  AND  THE  RELIGIOUS 
BELIEFS  OF  JUDAISM 

Then  a  kingdom  over  all  mankind  for  all  times  shall  God  i. 


God's 
coming 


raise  up,  who  once  gave  the  holy  law  to  the  pious,  for  whom 
he  pledged  to  open  every  land,  the  world  and  the  portals  of  '^^'•gn  °^ 
the  blessed,  and  all  joys,  and  an  eternal,  immortal  spirit  and  fsfbyl. 
a  joyous  heart.     Aiid  out  of  every  land  they  shall  bring  n"*^'^** 
frankincense  and  gifts  to  the  house  of  the  great  God.     And  767- 
to  men  there  shall  be  no  other  house  where  men  may  learn 
of  the  world  to  be  than  that  which  God  hath  given  for  faith- 
ful men  to  honor ;  for  mortals  shall  call  it  the  temple  of  the 
mighty  God.     And  all  pathways  of  the  plain  and  rough  hills 
and  high  mountains  and  wild  waves  of  the  deep  shall  be  easy 
in  those  days  for  crossing  and  saiHng ;  for  perfect  peace  for 
the  good  shall  come  on  earth.    And  the  prophets  of  the 
mighty  God  shall  remove  the  sword ;  for  they  are  the  rulers 
of  mortals  and  the  righteous  kings.     And  there  shall  be 
righteous  wealth  among  mankind ;  for  this  is  the  judgment 
and  rule  of  the  mighty  God. 

Behold,  0  Lord,  and  raise  up  to  them  their  king,  the  son  2.  Rule 
of  David,  in  the  time  which  thou,  0  God,  knowest,  that  he 
may  reign  over  Israel  thy  servant;  and  gird  him  with 
strength  that  he  may  break  in  pieces  those  who  rule  un-  Tpsfsoi 
justly.  Purge  Jerusalem  with  wisdom  and  with  righteous-  "■^■^) 
ness,  from  the  heathen  who  trample  her  down  to  destroy 
her.  He  shall  thrust  out  the  sinners  from  the  inheritance, 
utterly  destroy  the  proud  spirit  of  the  sinners,  and  as  potters' 
vessels  he  shall  break  in  pieces  with  a  rod  of  iron  all  their 
substance.  He  shall  destroy  the  ungodly  nations  with  the 
word  of  his  mouth,  so  that  at  his  rebuke  the  nations  will 
flee  before  him,  and  he  shall  convict  the  sinners  in  the 
thoughts  of  their  hearts.  And  he  shall  gather  together  a 
holy  people,  whom  he  shall  lead  in  righteousness ;  and  shall 
judge  the  tribes  of  the  people  that  has  been  sanctified  by 
the  Lord  his  God.  And  he  shall  not  suffer  iniquity  to  lodge 
in  their  midst;  and  none  that  knoweth  wickedness  shall 
dwell  with  them.  For  he  shall  take  knowledge  of  them, 
that  they  are  all  the  sons  of  their  God,  and  shall  divide  them 

303 


of  the 
messi- 
anic 
king 


THE  MESSIANIC  HOPES 

upon  earth  according  to  their  tribes,  and  the  sojourner  and 
the  stranger  shall  dwell  with  them  no  more.  He  shall 
judge  the  nations  and  the  peoples  with  the  wisdom  of  his 
righteousness.  And  he  shall  possess  the  nations  of  the 
heathen  to  serve  him  beneath  his  yoke ;  and  he  shall  glorify 
the  Lord  in  a  place  to  be  seen  by  the  whole  earth ;  and  he 
shall  purge  Jerusalem  and  make  it  holy,  even  as  it  was  in 
the  days  of  old. 

3.  Char-  And  a  righteous  king  and  taught  of  God  is  he  who  reigneth 
tnd '  over  them ;  and  there  shall  be  no  iniquity  in  his  days  in  their 
effects  midst,  for  all  shall  be  holy  and  their  king  is  the  Lord  Messiah, 
^uie'^  For  he  shall  not  put  his  trust  in  horse  and  rider  and  bow,  nor 
(&,b-«)     gj^^jj  jjg  multiply  unto  himself  gold  and  silver  for  war,  nor 

by  ships  shall  he  gather  confidence  for  the  day  of  battle. 
The  Lord  himself  is  his  King,  and  the  hope  of  him  who  is 
strong  in  the  hope  of  God.  And  he  shall  have  mercy  upon 
all  the  nations  that  come  before  him  in  fear.  For  he  shall 
smite  the  earth  with  the  word  of  his  mouth,  even  for  ever- 
more. He  shall  bless  the  people  of  the  Lord  with  wisdom 
and  gladness.  He  himself  also  is  pure  from  sin,  so  that  he 
may  rule  a  mighty  people,  and  rebuke  princes  and  overthrow 
sinners  by  the  might  of  his  word.  And  he  shall  not  faint  all 
his  days,  because  he  leaneth  upon  his  God;  for  God  shall 
cause  him  to  be  mighty  through  the  spirit  of  holiness,  and 
wise  through  the  counsel  of  understanding,  with  might  and 
righteousness.  And  the  blessing  of  the  Lord  is  with  him  in 
might,  and  his  hope  in  the  Lord  shall  not  faint.  And  who 
can  stand  up  against  him;  he  is  mighty  in  his  works  and 
strong  in  the  fear  of  God,  tending  the  flock  of  the  Lord  with 
faith  and  righteousness.  And  he  shall  allow  none  of  them 
to  faint  in  their  pasture.  In  holiness  shall  he  lead  them  all, 
and  there  shall  be  no  pride  among  them  that  any  should  be 
oppressed. 

4.  Ap.  And  there  I  saw  One  who  had  a  head  of  days,  and  his  head 
a^e  was  white  like  wool,  and  with  him  was  another  being  whose 
sln^of  countenance  had  the  appearance  of  a  man,  and  his  face  was 
Man  full  of  graciousuess,  like  one  of  the  holy  angels.  And  I 
46"5)'^     asked  the  angel  who  went  with  me  and  showed  me  all  the 

hidden  things,  concerning  that  Son  of  Man,  who  he  was, 
and  whence  he  was,  and  why  he  went  with  the  Head  of 

304 


GROWTH  OF  ISRAEL'S  MESSIANIC  HOPES 

Days?  And  he  answered  and  said  to  me,  "This  is  the  Son 
of  Man  who  hath  righteousness,  with  whom  dwelleth  right- 
eousness, and  who  reveals  all  the  treasures  of  that  which  is 
hidden,  because  the  Lord  of  Spirits  hath  chosen  him,  and  his 
lot  before  the  Lord  of  Spirits  hath  surpassed  everything  in 
uprightness  for  ever." 

Before  the  sun  and  the  signs  were  created,  before  the  stars  5.  His 
of  the  heaven  were  made,  his  name  was  named  before  the  ^^%^, 
Lord  of  Spirits.     He  will  be  a  staff  to  the  righteous  on  which  ence 
they  will  support  themselves  and  not  fall,  and  he  will  be  the  w^rid- 
light  of  the  Gentiles,  and  the  hope  of  those  whose  hearts  are  mk^i„B 
troubled.     All  who  dwell  on  earth  will  fall  down  and  bow  (^8  ■^) 
the  knee  before  him  and  will  bless  and  laud  and  magnify 
with  song  the  Lord  of  Spirits.     And  for  this  reason  hath  he 
been  chosen  and  hidden  before  him  before  the  creation  of 
the  world  and  for  evermore. 

And  he  sat  on  the  throne  of  his  glory,  and  the  sum  of  6.  m 
judgment  was  committed  to  him,  and  the  Son  of  Man 
caused  the  sinners  and  those  who  have  led  the  world  astray  U9"  2=') 
to  pass  away  and  be  destroyed  from  off  the  face  of  the  earth. 
With  chains  they  shall  be  bound,  and  in  their  assembling- 
place  of  destruction  shall  they  be  imprisoned,  and  all  their 
works  will  vanish  from  the  face  of  the  earth.  And  hence- 
forth there  will  be  nothing  that  is  corruptible;  for  the  Son 
of  Man  hath  appeared  and  sitteth  on  the  throne  of  his  glory, 
and  all  evil  will  pass  away  before  his  face  and  depart;  but 
the  word  of  the  Son  of  Man  will  be  strong  before  the  Lord 
of  Spirits. 

And  in  those  days  will  the  earth  also  give  back  those  who  7. 
are  treasured  up  within  it,  and  Sheol  also  will  give  back  that 
which  it  has  received,  and  hell  will  give  back  that  which  it 
owes.     And  he  will  choose  the  righteous  and  holy  from 


work  as 
judge 


Resur- 
rection 
and 
glorifi- 
oation 

among  them;  for  the  day  of  their  redemption  is  at  hand.      right- 
eous 


I.  The  Growth  of  Israel's  Messianic  Hopes.  Eternal  hopefulness 
is  a  marked  characteristic  of  the  Hebrew  race.  Throughout  most  of 
their  history  the  greater  the  calamities  that  overtook  them  the  greater 
was  their  assurance  that  these  were  but  the  prelude  to  a  glorious  vindi- 
cation and  dehverance.  This  hopefulness  was  not  merely  the  result  of 
their  natural  optimism,  but  of  the  belief,  formed  by  their  experiences  in 

305 


THE  MESSIANIC  HOPES 

many  a  national  crisis,  that  a  God  of  justice  was  overruling  the  events 
of  history,  and  that  he  was  working  not  for  man's  destruction  but  for 
his  highest  happiness  and  well-being.  It  was  their  insight  into  the 
divine  purpose  that  led  the  Hebrew  prophets  to  break  away  from  the 
popular  traditions  that  projected  backward  to  the  beginnings  of  history 
the  realization  of  man's  fondest  hopes.  Instead  they  proclaimed  that 
the  golden  era  lay  in  the  future  rather  than  the  past.  The  hopes  of 
Israel's  prophets  regarding  that  future  took  many  different  forms. 
Often  the  form  was  determined  by  the  earlier  experiences  of  the  nation. 
At  many  periods  the  people  looked  for  a  revival  of  the  glories  of  the  days 
of  David.  In  later  days,  when  they  were  oppressed  by  cruel  persecutions, 
they  revived  in  modified  form  the  dreams  that  had  been  current  in  the 
childhood  of  the  Semitic  race,  and  thought  of  a  supernatural  kingdom 
that  was  to  be  inaugurated  after  Jehovah  and  his  attendant  angels,  like 
Marduk  in  the  old  Babylonian  tradition  of  the  creation,  had  overcome 
Satan  and  the  fallen  angels.  Israel's  messianic  hopes  were  also  shaped 
and  broadened  by  the  teachings  of  the  great  ethical  prophets.  A  grow- 
ing realization  of  the  imperfections  of  the  existing  order  led  them  to 
look  ever  more  expectantly  to  the  time  when  the  prophetic  ideals  of 
justice  and  mercy  would  be  realized  in  society,  as  well  as  in  the  character 
of  the  individual.  These  different  expectations  regarding  the  future  are 
broadly  designated  as  messianic  prophecies.  The  word  "messianic," 
like  its  counterpart  "Messiah"  (Greek,  "Christ"),  comes  from  the  He- 
brew word  meaning  to  smear  or  to  anoint.  It  designated  in  ancient 
times  the  weapons  consecrated  for  battle  or  the  king  chosen  and  thus 
symbolically  set  aside  to  lead  the  people  as  Jehovah's  representative,  or 
a  priest  called  to  represent  the  people  in  the  ceremonial  worship.  The 
common  underlying  idea  in  the  word  is  that  of  consecration  to  a  divine 
purpose.  In  its  narrower  application  it  describes  simply  the  agent 
who  is  to  realize  God's  purpose  in  history,  but  in  its  broader  and  pre- 
vailing usage  it  designates  all  prophecies  that  described  the  ideal  which 
Jehovah  is  seeking  to  perfect  in  the  life  of  Israel  and  of  humanity,  and 
the  agents  or  agencies,  whether  individual  or  national,  material  or  spir- 
itual, natural  or  supernatural,  by  which  he  is  to  realize  that  ideal. 

II.  The  Kingly,  Nationalistic  Type  of  Messianic  Hope.  The  mes- 
sianic prophecies  of  the  Old  Testament  seem  only  confusing  and  con- 
tradictory until  the  three  distinct  types  are  recognized.  These  differ- 
ent types  of  messianic  prophecy  naturally  shade  into  each  other,  and 
yet  they  are  fundamentally  distinct  and  were  represented  throughout 
Israel's  history  by  different  classes  of  thinkers.     The  first  is  the  kingly, 

306 


THE  KINGLY,  NATIONALISTIC  TYPE  OF  HOPE 

nationalistic  type  of  hope.  It  came  into  existence  as  soon  as  Israel  be- 
came a  nation,  and  may  be  traced  in  the  Balaam  oracles  in  Numbers 
24"-io^  where  the  seer  is  represented  as  beholding  Israel's  victorious  king 
smiting  its  foes,  the  MoabiteS  and  Edomites,  and  ruling  gloriously  over 
a  triumphant  people.  It  is  echoed  in  II  Samuel  7'""'®  in  the  promise 
that  the  house  of  Davnd  should  rule  peacefully  and  uninterruptedly 
through  succeeding  generations.  Ezekiel,  in  his  picture  of  the  restored 
nation  in  37^^"^*,  declares  in  the  name  of  Jehovah  that  "my  servant 
David  shall  be  king  over  them  and  they  shall  dwell  in  the  land  that  I 
have  given  to  my  servant  Jacob  wherein  their  fathers  dwelt,  and  they 
shall  dwell  therein,  they  and  their  sons  forever,  and  David  my  servant 
shall  be  their  prince  forever."  In  such  passages  as  Isaiah  9  and  11  the 
Davidic  ruler  is  represented  as  reigning  not  despotically  or  selfishly,  but 
in  accordance  with  the  principles  of  justice  and  mercy,  bringing  peace 
to  all  his  subjects.  As  has  already  been  noted,  in  the  prophecies  of 
Haggai  and  Zechariah  and  in  connection  with  the  rebuilding  of  the  sec- 
ond temple  Israel's  kingly,  nationalistic  hope  reached  its  culmination,  but 
through  the  victories  of  Darius  was  rudely  cast  to  the  ground  (XCV^')- 
For  the  next  three  centuries  and  a  half,  throughout  the  Persian  and 
Greek  periods,  this  type  of  Israel's  messianic  hope  was  apparently 
silenced.  The  Maccabean  struggles  and  victories,  however,  and  the 
oppressive  rule  of  Rome  stirred  this  smouldering  hope  into  a  flame  and 
gave  it  wide  currency  among  the  people  at  the  beginning  of  the  Christian 
era.  Again  the  nation  came  to  the  forefront.  In  the  beautiful  prophecy 
of  Zechariah  9°'  ^'',  which  apparently  comes  from  the  earlier  part  of  the 
Maccabean  era,  is  found  the  noble  picture  of  a  peasant  king,  humble  yet 
victorious,  establishing  with  the  sword  a  world-wide  kingdom.  Mem- 
ories of  the  glorious  achievements  of  the  Maccabean  leaders  kindled  the 
popular  imagination.  When  in  63  B.C.  Rome's  iron  hand  closed  upon 
Palestine,  the  eyes  of  the  Jews  looked  expectandy  for  the  advent  of  a 
champion  like  David  of  old,  who  would  crush  the  heathen,  convict  the 
sinful  Jews,  and  gather  the  faithful  people,  ruling  over  them  in  justice 
and  with  tender  care.  These  hopes  are  most  plainly  expressed  in  the 
Psalms  of  Solomon,  which  were  written  near  the  beginning  of  the  Roman 
period.  These  expectations  in  their  more  material  form  inspired  the 
party  of  the  Zelots  during  the  earlier  part  of  the  first  Christian  century 
repeatedly  to  unsheathe  the  sword  in  the  vain  effort  to  overthrow  Rome 
and  to  establish  at  once  the  rule  of  the  Messiah.  It  was  because  this  type 
of  hope  was  so  strong  in  the  minds  of  the  common  people  that  the  false 
messiahs  who  rose  from  time  to  time  were  able  quickly  to  gather  thou- 

307 


THE  MESSIANIC  HOPES 

sands  about  them  in  the  vain  expectation  that  the  moment  of  deliverance 
had  at  last  arrived. 

III.  The  Apocalyptic,  Catastrophic  Type  of  Messianic  Hope. 

Another  class  of  thinkers  in  Israel  looked  not  for  a  temporal  but  for  a 
supernatural  kingdom.  It  is  usually  described  in  the  symbolic  language 
of  the  apocalypse.  The  inauguration  of  this  kingdom  was  not  dependent 
upon  man's  activity  but  solely  upon  the  will  of  God.  The  exact  time 
and  manner  of  its  institution  was  clothed  in  mystery.  Traces  of  this 
belief  are  found  in  the  references  in  Amos  to  the  popular  expectations 
regarding  the  day  of  Jehovah.  Evidently  the  Northern  Israelites  lived 
in  anticipation  of  a  great  universal  judgment  day,  in  which  their  heathen 
foes  would  be  suddenly  destroyed  and  they  themselves  would  be  exalted. 
It  was  a  belief  which  Amos  and  the  ethical  prophets  who  followed  him 
strongly  combated,  for  they  were  fully  aware  of  the  fundamental  weak- 
ness in  the  apocalyptic  or  catastrophic  type  of  prophecy:  it  took  away 
from  the  nation  and  individual  all  personal  responsibility.  Furthermore, 
its  roots  went  back  to  the  old  Semitic  mythology.  This  type  of  hope, 
however,  was  too  firmly  fixed  in  the  popular  mind  to  be  dispelled  even  by 
the  preaching  of  Israel's  greatest  prophets.  As  a  result  of  the  calamities 
that  gathered  about  the  fall  of  the  Hebrew  state  it  was  revived.  It  is 
found  in  Ezekiel,  Zechariah,  and  Joel.  Each  of  these  prophets  looked 
forward  to  the  time  when  Jehovah  would  miraculously  overthrow  their 
heathen  foes,  restore  his  scattered  people,  and  establish  for  them  a 
world-mde,  eternal  kingdom.  In  the  closing  chapters  of  the  book  of 
Daniel  this  form  of  belief  attains  its  fullest  expression  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. In  the  Similitudes  of  Enoch  (37-71),  which  come  either  from 
the  latter  part  of  the  Maccabean  era  or  else  from  the  days  of  Herod,  these 
messianic  hopes  are  still  further  developed.  Instead  of  Israel's  guardian 
angel  Michael,  represented  as  coming  on  the  clouds  from  heaven  and  in 
appearance  like  a  son  of  man,  a  heavenly  Messiah  is  introduced.  He 
is  known  by  the  title  of  the  Messiah,  the  Elect  One,  and  the  Son  of  Man 
(probably  taken  from  the  book  of  Daniel).  In  Enoch  the  term  Son  of 
Man  has  ev-idently  become,  as  in  IV  Esdras,  the  title  of  a  personal 
Messiah.  He  is  described  as  pre-existent  and  gifted  with  the  divine 
authority.  WTien  he  appears,  the  dead  are  to  rise,  and  angels,  as  well 
as  men,  are  to  be  tried  before  his  tribunal.  The  sinners  and  the  fallen 
angels  he  will  condemn  to  eternal  punishment.  All  sin  and  wTong  shall 
be  driven  from  the  earth.  Heaven  and  earth  shall  be  transformed,  and  an 
eternal  kingdom  shall  be  established  in  which  all  the  righteous,  whether 
dead  or  living,  shall  participate.    This  was  evidently  the  type  of  messi- 

308 


THE  APOCALYPTIC  TYPE  OF  MESSIANIC  HOPE 

anic  hope  held  by  the  Pharisees  as  well  as  the  Essenes.  As  the  result  of 
the  teaching  of  the  Pharisees  it  was  held  widely  by  the  Jews  of  the  first 
Christian  century.  It  was  clearly  in  the  minds  of  Jesus'  disciples  when 
he  made  his  last  journey  to  Jerusalem.  It  was  both  the  background  and 
the  barrier  to  all  his  work.  It  is  the  key  to  the  interpretation  of  Paul's 
conception  of  the  Christ,  or  the  Messiah,  for  he  had  been  educated  a 
Pharisee.  This  apocalyptic  type  of  messianic  hope  powerfully  influ- 
enced the  life  and  thought  of  the  early  Christian  Church  and  even  per- 
me?-ted  the  Gospel  narratives.  The  question  of  how  far  Jesus  himself 
was  influenced  by  it  is  one  of  the  most  vital  and  difficult  problems  of 
early  Christian  history. 

IV.  The  Ethical  and  Universalistic  Type  of  Messianic  Prophecy. 
Far  removed  from  the  kingly,  messianic  hopes  of  the  people  and  the 
supernatural  visions  of  the  apocalypses  were  the  plain,  direct,  practical 
ideals  of  Israel's  great  ethical  prophets.  Amos,  Hosea,  Isaiah,  and  Jere- 
miah all  united  in  declaring  that  the  realization  of  Jehovah's  purpose  in 
history  depended  primarily  upon  the  response  of  his  people.  They  re- 
garded the  kingdom  of  God  as  a  natural  growth.  It  represented  the 
gradual  transformation  of  the  characters  of  men  under  the  influence 
of  God's  truth  and  spirit  working  in  their  minds.  They  hoped  and 
labored  to  see  the  nation  Israel  living  in  full  accord  with  the  demands  of 
justice,  mercy,  and  service.  The  II  Isaiah,  under  the  influences  which 
grew  out  of  the  destruction  of  the  temple  and  the  closer  contact  with  the 
heathen  world,  voiced  this  type  of  messianic  hope  in  its  broadest  and 
most  spiritualized  form.  He  declared  that  the  Israelites  had  been  called 
and  trained  for  a  unique  service  and  that  that  service  was  to  be  per- 
formed by  them  quietly  and  unostentatiously,  as  propb-ts  and  teachers 
of  men.  He  also  presented  most  clearly  Israel's  missionary  ideal,  and 
showed  that  its  task  was  not  to  destroy  but  to  bring  light  to  the  Gentile 
world.  He  and  the  more  enlightened  prophets  who  followed  him  saw 
an  ever-widening  kingdom  established  without  the  aid  of  the  sword  and 
freed  from  all  racial  barriers— the  eternal,  universal,  spiritual  kingdom 
of  God  on  earth.  It  is  evident  that  in  contrast  to  the  other  types  of 
messianic  prophecy  this  form  was  comprehensible,  practicable,  and  alone 
capable  of  realization. 

V.  The  Messianic  Hopes  of  Judaism  at  the  Beginning  of  the 
Christian  Era.  Unfortunately,  as  a  result  of  the  varied  experiences 
through  which  Judaism  passed  in  the  centuries  immediately  preceding 
the  Christian  era,  its  ethical  and  universal  messianic  hopes  were  largely 
eclipsed.    The  ideal  of  the  suffering  servant  appears  to  have  been  almost 

309 


THE  MESSIANIC  HOPES 

forgotten.  As  the  later  Jews  read  the  earlier  scriptures  of  their  race  in 
order  to  determine  what  the  future  held  in  store  for  them,  they  fixed  their 
eyes  upon  the  kingly  and  apocalyptic  prophecies.  Regarding  all  script- 
ures as  equally  authoritative,  they  attempted  the  impossible  task  of 
blending  these  fundamentally  different  types  of  prophecy.  The  result 
was  that  their  beliefs  became,  indeed,  a  complex  labyrinth  with  paths 
leading  in  opposite  directions.  Later  events  have  proved  beyond  ques- 
tion that  these  popular  types  were  the  dreams  of  religious  enthusiasts 
rather  than  true  pictures  of  the  way  in  which  the  divine  purpose  was  to 
be  perfected  in  human  history,  and  yet  the  apocalyptic  type  of  prophecy 
was  not  without  its  significance.  It  tended  to  correct  the  narrow  national 
hopes  of  the  Jews  and  to  lift  them  to  the  consideration  of  that  which  was 
spiritual  and  eternal.  It  also  led  them  to  appreciate  the  unity  of  all 
history,  and  in  times  of  distress  it  kept  alive  their  faith  in  a  God  who 
was  wisely  guiding  their  destinies.  Underlying  all  these  different  types 
of  prophecy  is  the  appreciation  of  the  broad  truth  that  God  was  work- 
ing out  in  the  lives  of  men  and  nations  a  definite  purpose,  and  that  that 
purpose  was  good,  and  that  the  God  back  of  all  history  was  a  God  not 
only  of  power  but  also  of  love.  It  was  inevitable  that  the  ethical  and 
more  spiritual  expectations  of  the  early  Hebrew  prophets  should  find 
the  fullest  response  in  the  heart  and  life  of  the  Great  Teacher.  In  the 
face  of  opposition  from  the  leaders  of  his  race,  from  the  multitudes  that 
gathered  about  him,  and  even  from  the  disciples  who  loved  and  followed 
him,  he  proclaimed  that  the  kingdom  of  God  would  not  come  by  obser- 
vation, but  that  its  growth  would  be  natural  and  gradual  like  that  of  the 
mustard  seed,  that  it  was  not  external  but  within  the  hearts  of  men,  that 
membership  in  that  kingdom  depended  not  upon  the  arbitrary  will  of 
God,  but  upon  men's  acting  in  accord  with  that  will  in  the  every-day  re 
lations  of  life.  Thus  Jesus  prepared  the  way  for  the  complete  fulfil- 
ment of  all  that  was  noblest  and  best  in  Israel's  messianic  hopes,  and 
in  his  character  and  teachings  far  surpassed  the  highest  expectation* 
of  the  inspired  teachers  of  his  race. 


310 


APPENDIX 
I 

A  PRACTICAL  REFERENCE  LIBRARY 

Books  for  Constant  Reference.  The  complete  text  of  the  biblica! 
writings  of  the  post-exilic  period  are  found  in  Volumes  II  to  VI  of  the 
Student's  Old  Tedament.  A  careful,  thorough  r^sumd  of  the  history  is 
contained  in  Riggs's  History  of  the  Jewish  People  during  the  Maccahean 
and  Roman  Periods.  Professor  Bevan,  in  his  Jerusalem  Under  the  High 
Priests,  presents,  especially  from  the  ecclesiastical  point  of  view,  a  fresh 
survey  of  the  history  during  the  Greek  and  Maccabcan  periods.  The 
geographical  background  may  be  studied  either  in  George  Adam  Smith's 
Historical  Geography  of  the  Ploly  Land  or  in  Kent's  Biblical  Geography 
and  History. 

Additional  Books  of  Reference:  Introductions  and  Commen- 
taries. In  addition  to  the  standard  Old  Testament  introductions  by 
McFadyen,  Cornill,  and  Driver,  the  collection  of  monographs  in  Pro- 
fessor Torrey's  Ezra  Studies  will  be  found  especially  valuable.  The 
introduction,  as  well  as  the  critical  notes,  in  the  brief  yet  scholarly  vol- 
umes of  the  Ne^v  Century  Bible  are  exceedingly  useful  for  the  general 
reader.  More  fundamental  are  the  volumes  in  the  International  Critical 
Commentary.  The  introductions  to  the  different  books  in  Hastings' 
Dictionary  of  the  Bible  and  the  Encyclopccdia  Biblica  are  clear,  concise, 
and  written  from  the  modern  point  of  view. 

Jewish  and  Contemporary  History.  The  thorough  student  of  this 
period  will  find  a  wealth  of  suggestive  material  in  Smith's  Old  Testa- 
ment History  and  in  Schurer's  monumental  work,  A  History  of  the 
Jewish  People  in  the  Time  of  Jesus  Christ.  The  later  development  of 
Israel's  religion  is  presented  in  Marti's  Religion  of  the  Old  Testament,  in 
the  first  part  of  Toy's  Judaism  and  Christianity,  in  Bousset's  Judaism, 
and  in  Charles's  Eschatology,  Hebreto,  Jewish  and  Christian.  An  excel- 
lent survey  of  the  contemporary  history  of  the  period  is  to  be  found  in 
the  History  of  the  Ancient  World  by  Goodspeed  or  in  Meyer's  Ancient 
History.    A  more  detailed  treatment  of  the  contemporary  history  will 

311 


APPENDIX 

be  found  in  the  History  of  Greece  by  Curtius  or  by  Holm.  The  His' 
tory  of  Rome  is  fully  traced  in  the  monumental  works  of  Mommsen  or 
Gibbon  or  the  more  recent  study  in  The  Greatness  and  Decline  of  Rome 
by  Ferrero.  Briefer  but  equally  reliable  histories  of  Rome  are  those 
by  Botsford,  Horton,  and  Seignobos. 


II 

GENERAL  QUESTIONS  AND  SUBJECTS  FOR  SPECIAL 
RESEARCH 

The  General  Questions,  as  in  the  preceding  volumes,  follow  the 
main  divisions  of  the  book,  and  are  intended  to  guide  the  student  in 
collecting  and  co-ordinating  the  more  important  facts  presented  in  the 
biblical  text  or  in  the  notes. 

The  Subjects  for  Special  Research  are  intended  to  guide  the 
reader  to  further  study  in  related  lines,  and,  by  means  of  detailed  refer- 
ences, to  introduce  him  to  the  most  helpful  passages  in  the  best  English 
books  of  reference.  In  class-room  work  many  of  these  topics  may  be 
profitably  assigned  for  personal  research  and  report.  The  references 
are  to  pages,  unless  otherwise  indicated.  Ordinarily,  several  parallel 
references  are  given  that  the  student  may  be  able  to  utilize  the  book 
at  hand.  More  detailed  classified  bibliographies  will  be  found  in  the 
appendices  of  Volumes  II-VI  of  the  author's  Student's  Old  Testament. 

THE  EXILE  AND   REVIVAL  OF  THE   JUDEAN 
COMMUNITY 

§  XCI.  The  Jews  in  Palestine  and  Egypt.  General  Ques- 
tions: 1.  What  did  the  final  destruction  of  Jerusalem  in  586  mean  to 
the  Jewish  people  ?  2.  Describe  the  structure  and  contents  of  the  book 
of  Lamentations.  3.  Its  probable  authorship  and  date.  4.  Its  theme 
and  historical  value.  5.  The  condition  of  the  Jews  who  were  left  in 
Palestine.  6.  The  numbers  of  the  Jews  in  Egypt.  7.  The  life  of  the 
Jewish  colony  at  Elephantine.  8.  The  character  and  service  of  the 
temple  of  Jahu. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  literary  history  of  the 
book  of  Lamentations.  McFadyen,  Introd.,  294-7;  Driver,  Lit.  of  the 
O.  T.,  456-65.     2.  History  of  Egypt  from  600  to  560  B.C.     Breasted, 

312 


APPENDIX 

Hist,  of  the  Ancient  Egyptians,  404-18.  3.  The  discoveries  at  Elephan- 
tine. Sayce  and  Cowley,  Aramaic  Papyri  Discovered  at  Assuan;  Sachau, 
Drei  aramdische  Papyrururkunden  aus  Elephantine. 

§  XCII.  Ezekiel's  Message  to  His  Scattered  Countrymen.  Gen- 
eral Questions:  1.  Describe  the  situation  of  the  Jewish  colony  in 
Babylon.  2.  Their  opportunities  and  occupations.  3.  Their  religious 
life.     4.  The  prophecies  of  Ezekiel  after  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem. 

5.  Meaning  of  his  description  of  the  valley  of  dry  bones  in  chapter  37. 

6.  His  conception  of  the  way  in  which  the  scattered  exiles  were  to  be 
restored.  7.  His  plan  of  the  restored  temple.  8.  The  meaning  and 
significance  of  this  detailed  plan. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  Babylon  under  Nebuchad- 
rezzar. Goodspeed,  Hist,  of  Bobs,  and  Assyrs.,  336-50;  En.  Bib.,  HI, 
3369-71.  2.  The  religious  institutions  of  the  Babylonians.  Goodspeed, 
Hist,  of  Bahs.  and  Assyrs.,  351-66;  Jastrow,  Relig.  of  Bah.  and  Assyr.; 
Johns,  Bab.  and  Assyr.  Laws,  Letters,  and  Contracts,  208-17.  3.  Influ- 
ence of  Babylonian  institutions  upon  Ezekiel.    Toy,  Ezek.  (Introd.). 

§  XCIII.  The  Closing  Years  of  the  Babylonian  Rule.  General 
Questions.  1.  Describe  the  different  influences  that  transformed 
the  Jews  into  a  literary  people.  2.  The  nature  of  their  literary  ac- 
tivity. 3.  The  Old  Testament  books  that  were  written  or  re-edited 
during  this  period.  4.  The  general  character  of  the  Holiness  Code.  5. 
The  national  hopes  inspired  by  the  liberation  of  Jehoiachin.  6.  The 
character  of  Nabonidus.  7.  The  effects  of  his  rule.  8.  The  early  con- 
quests of  Cyrus.  9.  His  capture  of  Babylon.  10.  His  policy  toward 
conquered  peoples. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  Contents  and  history  of  the 
Holiness  Code.  St.  0.  T.,  IV,  36-42;  McFadyen,  Introd.  to  0.  T., 
31-4.  2.  The  last  decade  of  Babylonian  history.  Goodspeed,  Hist,  of 
Babs.  and  Assyrs.,  S67-7Q;  Kent,  Hist.  J.  P.,  60-77.  3.  Character  and 
reign  of  Cyrus.  Herodotus,  I,  95,  108-30,  177-214;  Hastings,  D.  B.,  I, 
541-2;  Rawlinson,  Atic.  Monarchies,  IV,  VII;  Duncker,  Hist,  of 
Antiq.,  V. 

§  XCIV.  The  Rebuilding  of  the  Temple.  General  Questions: 
Describe  the  contents  and  literary  history  of  the  books  of  Ezra  and 
Nehemiah.  2.  Their  authorship.  3.  The  Chronicler's  peculiar  ideas 
regarding  the  restoration.  4.  Revolutions  in  the  Persian  Empire  that 
aroused  the  Jews  to  action.  5.  Haggai's  appeal  to  the  Judean  com- 
munity. 6.  Measures  taken  to  stop  the  rebuilding  of  the  temple.  7. 
Meaning  of  the  rebuilding  of  the  temple  to  the  Jewish  race. 

313 


APPENDIX 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  historical  value  of  Ezra 
and  Nehemiah.  Torrey,  Composition  and  Historical  Value  of  Ezra  and 
Nehemiah,  or  Ezra  Studies,  62-251.  2.  The  first  two  decades  of  Persian 
history.  Goodspeed,  Hist,  of  Ancient  World,  60-2;  Ragozin,  The  Story 
of  Media,  II;  Meyer,  Anc.  Hist.,  88-93.  3.  Evidence  that  there  was 
no  general  return  of  the  Jews  in  536  B.C.  Kent,  Hist.  J.  P.,  126-36; 
Torrey,  Ezra  Studies,  297-307. 

§  XCV.  Zechariah's  Visions  and  Encouraging  Addresses.  Gen- 
eral Questions:  1.  Describe  the  evidence  that  Zechariah  wrote  from 
the  point  of  view  of  a  priest.  2.  The  structure  and  contents  of  his 
book.  3.  The  problems  of  the  Judean  community.  4.  Their  hopes 
of  a  national  revival.  5.  Zechariah's  assurances.  6.  The  steps  that 
were  taken  to  make  Zerubbabel  king.  7.  Evidence  that  the  popular 
kingly  hopes  were  disappointed.  8.  The  content  of  Zechariah's  later 
sermons.     9.  The  hopes  which  he  inspired  in  his  fellow-countrymen. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  Origin  of  the  apocalj'ptic  type 
of  prophecy.  Jewish  Encyc,  I,  669-73;  St.  0.  T.,  Ill,  42-3;  Hastings, 
D.  B.,  I,  109-10.     2.  The  popular  messianic  hopes  of  the  period.    St. 

0.  T.,  Ill,  44-5,  472-86.  3.  The  establishment  of  Darius'  authority. 
Herodotus,  II,  67-86;  Ragozin,  Media,  XIII;  Hastings,  D.  B.,  I,  558. 

§  XCVI.  Israel's  Training  and  Destiny.     General  Questions: 

1.  Describe  the  conditions  in  the  Judean  community  during  the  seventy 
years  following  the  rebuilding  of  the  temple.  2.  The  forces  that  kept 
alive  the  spiritual  life  of  the  Jews.  3.  The  indications  that  Isaiah  40-66 
were  written  in  Palestine.  4.  The  probable  date  of  these  chapters.  5. 
Their  distinctive  literary  characteristics.  6.  The  purpose  for  which 
they  were  written. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  organization  of  the  Per- 
sian Empire  under  Darius.  Goodspeed,  Hist,  of  Anc.  World,  62-3; 
Ragozin,  Media,  384-91;  Sayce,  Anc.  Empires,  247-50;  En.  Bib.,  I, 
1016-7.  2.  The  Persian  invasions  of  Europe.  Goodspeed,  Anc.  Hist., 
122-8;  Herodotus,  IV,  1-142;  Ragozin,  Media,  412-29;  Bury,  Hist,  of 
Greece,  265-96;  Botsford,  Hist,  of  Greece,  127-36.  3.  Contents  and 
literary  characteristics  of  Isaiah  40-48.  St.  0.  T.,  Ill,  27-30;  Cobb,  in 
Jour,  of  Bib.  Lit.,  XXVII,  48-64;  Box,  Isaiah,  179-237. 

§  XCVII.  Conditions  and  Problems  in  the  Jewish  Community. 
General  Questions:  1.  What  is  the  probable  date  of  the  book  of 
Malachi?  2.  Describe  its  teachings  regarding  the  temple  service.  3. 
The  need  of  a  great  moral  awakening.  4.  The  doubts  exjiressed 
by  the  faithful  in  the  community.     5.  The  encouraging  promises  held 

314 


APPENDIX 

out  to  them.  6.  Presentation  of  the  problem  of  the  faithful  in  the 
psalms  of  the  period. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  Contemporary  Greek  history 
and  literature.  Goodspeed,  Anc.  Hist,  159-96;  Bury,  Hist,  of  Greece, 
507-90;  Jebb,  Greek  Lit,  109-20.  2.  The  earliest  psalms.  Briggs, 
PWm,  I,  LXXXIX-XCII;  Cobb,  5Jt.  o/P^*.,  XI-XIV;  Driver,  Zi<. 
of  the  0.  T.,  371-2;  McFadyen,  Introd.  to  0.  T.,  238-50.  3.  Psalm 
literature  among  contemporary  peoples.  Breasted,  Hist  of  Anc. 
Egyptians,  273-7;   Jastrow,  Relig.  of  Bab.  and  Assyr.,  294-327. 

§  XCVIII.  The  Problems  and  Teachings  of  the  Book  of  Job. 
General  Questions:  1.  Describe  the  structure  of  the  book  of  Job. 
2.  The  different  literary  units  which  have  entered  into  it.  3.  The  prob- 
able dates  of  these  different  sections.  4.  Contents  of  the  original  prose 
story.  5.  The  theme  and  contents  of  the  great  poem  in  3-31,  38'^2'. 
6.  The  different  lines  of  progress  in  Job's  thought.  7.  The  meaning 
of  the  speeches  of  Jehovah.  8.  The  contribution  of  the  book  to  the 
solution  of  the  problem  of  evil. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  Babylonian  prototype  of 
Job.  Jastrow,  in  Jour,  of  Bib.  Lit,  XXV,  Pt.  II,  135-91.  2.  Com- 
parison of  Job  with  other  great  skeptical  dramas.  Owen,  The  Five 
Great  Skeptical  Dramas  of  History.  3.  The  modern  explanations  of 
the  problem  of  evil.     Royce,  Studies  of  Good  and  Evil. 

§  XCIX.  The  Training  and  Mission  of  the  True  Servant  of 
Jehovah.  General  Questions:  1.  Describe  the  different  charac- 
teristics of  Jehovah's  servant  in  Isaiah  49-53.  2.  What  was  the  proph- 
et's purpose  in  presenting  this  vivid  portrait  of  Jehovah's  ideal  ser- 
vant? 3.  Describe  the  class  to  whom  the  prophet  appealed.  4.  His 
interpretation  of  the  task  of  the  servant.  5.  His  training.  6.  The 
different  methods  whereby  he  was  to  accomplish  his  mission.  7.  Did 
the  prophet  have  in  mind  an  individual,  a  class,  or  simply  an  ideal 
character?  8.  In  what  ways  were  his  predictions  fulfilled?  9.  In 
what  sense  is  his  ideal  of  service  of  present-day  application  ? 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  meaning  and  history  of 
the  different  messianic  titles.  St  0.  T.,  Ill,  39,  47;  En.  Bib.,  HI, 
3057-61.  2.  Contents  and  unity  of  Isaiah  49-55.  St  0.  T.,  Ill,  28- 
30;  Box,  Isaiah,  238-83.  3.  How  far  was  Jesus  influenced  by  the  ideal 
of  the  suffering  servant? 

§  C.  Nehemiah's  Work  in  Rebuilding  the  Waifs  of  Jerusalem. 
General  Questions:  1.  What  is  the  historical  value  of  Nehemiah's 
memoirs  ?    2.  In  what  way  was  he  informed  of  conditions  in  Jerusalem  ? 

315 


APPENDIX 

3.  How  did  he  secure  permission  to  go  to  Jerusalem  ?  4.  Describe  the 
obstacles  that  there  confronted  him.  5.  His  plan  of  work.  6.  His 
diplomacy  in  dealing  with  his  opponents.  7.  The  task  of  rebuilding 
the  walls.  8.  Their  dedication.  9.  The  significance  of  the  rebuilding 
of  the  walls. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  Contemporary  events  in  Greek 
history.  Goodspeed,  Anc.  Hist.,  141-72;  Bury,  Hist,  of  Greece,  336- 
75;  Botsford,  Hist,  of  Greece,  151-85.  2.  The  topography  of  Jeru- 
salem. Kent,  Bib.  Geog.  and  Hist.,  64-72;  Smith,  Jerusalem,  I,  1-249; 
Hastings,  D.  B.,  II,  591-6.  3.  Recent  excavations  at  Jerusalem. 
Jerusalem  Vol.  of  P.  E.  F.  Memoirs;  Bliss  and  Dickey,  Excavations  at 
Jerusalem;  Smith,  Jerusalem,  I. 

§  CI.  Nehemiah's  Social  and  Religious  Reforms.  General 
Questions:  1.  Describe  the  cruel  oppression  of  the  leaders  of  the  Jew- 
ish community.  2.  The  efFect  upon  the  mass  of  the  people.  3.  The 
way  in  which  Nehemiah  corrected  these  evils.  4.  The  evidence  for  and 
against  the  historical  accuracy  of  Nehemiah  13.  5.  Nehemiah's  meas- 
ures to  improve  the  temple  service.  6.  His  emphasis  upon  Sabbath 
observance.  7.  His  opposition  to  foreign  marriages.  8.  The  import- 
ance of  his  work  as  a  whole. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  In  what  respects  was  Nehe- 
miah a  worthy  successor  of  the  earlier  Hebrew  prophets  ?  2.  The  later 
Jewish  laws  regarding  the  Sabbath.  St.  0.  T.,  TV,  263-4.  3.  Regard- 
ing marriage  with  foreigners.    St.  0.  T.,  IV,  54-5. 

§  CH.  Traditional  Account  of  the  Adoption  of  the  Priestly 
Law.  General  Questions:  1.  Describe  the  present  literary  form  of 
the  tradition  regarding  Ezra.  2.  Its  probable  history.  3.  Its  historical 
value.  4.  The  facts  underlying  it.  5.  Origin  of  the  later  priestly  laws. 
6.  Their  general  purpose.  7.  Their  more  important  regulations.  8. 
Their  transforming  influence  upon  the  Jewish  community. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  difficulties  in  accepting 
the  Ezra  narrative  as  strictly  historical.  Torrey,  Ezra  Studies,  208-78; 
Smith,  0.  T.  Hist,  390-8.  2.  History  of  the  later  priestly  codes.  St. 
O.  T.,  IV,  43-8.  3.  Income  and  duties  of  the  priests  and  Levites  ac- 
cording to  the  late  priestly  codes.     St.  0.  T.,  IV,  187-92,  197-202. 

§  CIH.  The  Jewish  State  during  the  Last  Century  of  Per- 
sian Rule.  General  Questions:  1.  Describe  the  indications  that 
the  Judean  community  enjoyed  unusual  prosperity  during  the  half- 
century  following  the  work  of  Nehemiah.  2.  The  effect  of  this  pros- 
perity upon  the  intellectual  life  of  the  Jews.     3.  The  growth  of  the 

316 


APPENDIX 

Psalter  during  this  period.  4.  The  date  of  the  prophecy  of  Joel. 
5.  Its  theme.  6.  The  hopes  of  the  Jews  at  this  time.  7.  Nature  of 
the  rule  of  the  high  priests.  8.  The  evidence  regarding  the  date  of  the 
Samaritan  schism.     9.  Its  causes.     10.  Its  effect  upon  Judaism. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  History  of  the  Persian  Empire 
between  400  and  332  B.C.  Cox,  The  Greeks  and  the  Persians.  2.  Con- 
temporary events  in  Greek  history.  Goodspeed,  Hist  of  Anc.  World, 
173-204;  Meyer,  Anc.  Hist.,  244-74.  3.  The  history  of  the  Samar- 
itans.   En.  Bib.,lY,425Q-M;  Montgomery,  The  Samaritans. 

THE  GREEK  AND  MACCABEAN  AGE 

§  CIV.  The  Jews  under  Their  Greek  Rulers.  General  Ques- 
tions: 1.  Describe  the  character  of  the  Jewish  historian,  Josephus. 
2.  The  extent  of  his  histories.  3.  Their  historical  value.  4.  Alex- 
ander's Asiatic  conquests.  5.  His  attitude  toward  the  Jews.  6.  The 
Jews  in  Alexandria.  7.  The  general  character  of  the  rule  of  the  Ptol- 
emies. 8.  Their  policy  in  the  treatment  of  the  Jews.  9.  Fortunes  of 
the  Jews  of  Palestine  during  the  first  century  of  Greek  rule.  10.  The 
Seleucid  kingdom  with  its  capital  at  Antioch.  11.  The  subjugation  of 
Palestine  by  the  Seleucids. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  Josephus's  rank  as  a  historian. 
Hastings,  D.  5.,  extra  Vol.,  461-73.  2.  Alexander  the  Great.  Mahaffy, 
The  Story  of  Alexander's  Empire,  1-11;  Hogarth,  Philip  and  Alex- 
ander of  Macedon;  Wheeler,  Alexander  the  Great.  3.  Character  of  the 
Ptolemaic  rulers.  Bevan,  Jerusalem  under  the  High  Priests,  21-30; 
Mahaffy,  The  Ptolemaic  Dynasty,  Vol.  IV  of  Petrie's  Hist,  of  Egypt. 

§  CV.  The  Wise  and  Their  Teachings.  General  Questions: 
1.  Describe  the  literary  structure  of  the  book  of  Proverbs.  2.  The 
evidence  that  it  is  the  work  of  many  different  wise  men.  3.  The  prob- 
able date  of  the  different  collections.  4.  The  references  to  the  wise 
in  the  pre-exilic  literature.  5.  The  influence  of  the  Babylonian  exile 
upon  their  activity.  6.  The  reasons  why  they  attained  their  greatest 
prominence  in  the  Greek  period.  7.  The  character  of  the  wise.  8. 
Their  aims.  9.  Their  methods.  10.  Their  important  social  and  moral 
teachings. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  book  of  Proverbs. 
McFadyen,  Inlrod.  to  0.  T.,  256-63;  Driver,  L.  0.  T.,  392-407;  Toy, 
Proverbs,  Introd.  2.  The  sages  of  Egypt  and  Greece.  The  Wisdom 
of  Ptah-hotep,  in  the  Wisdom  of  the  East  Series;  Symonds,  Studies  oftht 

317 


APPENDIX 

Greek  Poets,  I,  161-273;  Jebb,  Classical  Greek  Poetry.  3.  The  social 
teachings  of  the  book  of  Proverbs.  St.  0.  T.,  VI,  in  loco;  Kent,  The 
Wise  Men  of  Ancient  Israel  and  Their  Proverbs,  100-14,  158-75; 
Root,  The  Profit  of  the  Many,  17-126. 

§  CVI.  The  Different  Currents  of  Thought  in  Judaism  during 
the  Greek  Period.  General  Questions:  1.  Why  were  there  many 
different  currents  of  thought  in  Judaism  during  this  period?  2.  De- 
scribe the  character  and  aims  of  the  ritualists.  3.  Of  the  legalists. 
4,  Of  those  who  laid  especial  emphasis  upon  the  teaching  of  the  earlier 
prophets.     5.  The  evidence  regarding  the  date  of  the  book  of  Jonah, 

6.  The  meaning  of  the  story.  7.  Its  teaching.  8.  The  history  of  the 
book  of  Ecclesiastes.  9.  Its  point  of  view.  10.  Its  philosophy  of 
life. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  Chronicler's  conception 
of  the  origin  of  Israel's  institutions.  Curtis,  Chronicles,  Introd.;  Torrey, 
Ezra  Studies,  208-38;  St.  0.  T.,  II,  22-8.  2.  Greek  myths  parallel  to 
the  story  of  Jonah.  En.  Bib.,  II,  2568-9;  Taylor,  Primitive  Culture,  I, 
306.  3.  A  comparison  of  Koheleth's  philosophy  and  teaching  with 
those  of  the  author  of  Omar  Khayyam. 

§  CVII.  The  Teachings  of  Jesus  the  Son  of  Sirach.  General 
Questions:  1.  Describe  the  evidence  regarding  the  date  of  Jesus  the 
son  of  Sirach.  2.  The  character  of  the  man.  3.  The  history  of  his 
writings.  4.  The  nature  of  the  Greek  translation.  5.  The  recovery 
of  the  Hebrew  original.     6.  Its  picture  of  the  Jewish  life  of  the  period. 

7.  Its  description  of  the  wise  men  and  scribes.  8.  Its  social  teachings. 
9.  Its  religious  teachings. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  Hebrew  fragments  of  Ben 
Sira.  Cowley  and  Neubauer,  The  Original  Heb.  of  a  Portion  ofEcclus.; 
Schechter  and  Taylor,  The  Wisdom  of  Ben-Sira;  Hastings,  D.  B.,  IV, 
546-9;  En.  Bib.,  II,  1166-9.  2.  The  character  of  Ben  Sira  as  revealed 
in  his  writings.  Hastings,  D.  B.,  IV,  550;  En.  Bib.,  II,  1175-8;  Bevan, 
Jerusalem  under  the  High  Priests,  49-51.  3.  A  comparison  of  the 
moral  and  social  teachings  of  Ben  Sira  with  those  of  the  book  of  Prov- 
erbs.    Bevan,  Jerusalem  under  the  High  Priests,  52-68. 

§  CVIII.  The  Causes  of  the  Maccabean  Struggle.  General 
Questions:  1.  Describe  the  general  character  of  I  Maccabees.  2.  Its 
historical  value.  3.  II  Maccabees.  4.  The  attractive  and  aggressive 
qualities  in  the  contemporary  Hellenic  culture.  5.  Its  superiority  to 
the  teachings  of  Judaism.  6.  The  elements  in  which  Judaism  was 
superior.     7.  The  conquest  of  Hellenism  in  the  ranks  of  Judaism.     8. 

318 


APPENDIX 

The  influence  of  the  apostate  Jewish  high  priests.  9.  The  history  and 
character  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes.  10.  Reasons  why  he  attempted  to 
hellenize  the  Jews.     11.  The  measures  which  he  adopted. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  characteristics  of  Greek 
rehgion.  Gulick,  Life  of  the  Ancient  Greeks,  262-S3;  Dyer,  The  Gods 
in  Greece;  Goodspeed,  Hist,  of  Anc.  World,  148-51;  Hastings,  D.  B., 
extra  Vol.,  109-56.  2.  The  historical  value  of  II  Maccabees.  Hastings, 
D.  B.,  Ill,  189-92;  En.  Bib.,  Ill,  2869-79.  2.  Contemporary  portraits 
of  Antiochus  Epiphanes.  Livtj,  XLI-XLV;  PolyUm,  XXVI-XXXI; 
Appian,  Syr.,  45,  66;  Justin,  XXIV,  3. 

§  CIX.  The  Effect  of  Persecution  on  the  Jews.  General  Ques- 
tions: 1.  Describe  the  uprising  led  by  Mattathias.  2.  The  meth- 
ods adopted  by  the  rebels.  3.  The  origin  and  political  principles  of 
the  Hasideans  or  Pious.  4.  The  evidence  regarding  the  date  of  the 
visions  in  Daniel  7-12.  5.  Their  literary  character.  6.  Their  mean- 
ing and  aims.  7.  The  identification  of  the  four  heathen  kingdoms.  8, 
The  message  of  hope  presented  in  these  chapters.  9.  Its  effect  upon 
the  persecuted  Jews. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  town  of  Modein.  Kent, 
Bib.  Geog,  and  Hist.,  210-2;  Smith,  Hist.  Geog.  of  Holy  Land,  212. 
2.  Contents  and  literary  history  of  the  book  of  Daniel.  McFadyen, 
Introd.  to  0.  T.,  316-31;  Driver,  L.  0.  T.,  438-515;  Hastings,  D.  B.,  I, 
552-7. 

§  ex.  The  Victories  that  Gave  the  Jews  Religious  Liberty. 
General  Questions:  1.  Describe  the  characteristics  that  fitted  Judas 
to  be  a  great  political  leader.  2.  The  odds  against  which  he  and  the 
Jews  contended.  3.  The  physical  contour  of  western  Palestine.  4. 
The  defeat  of  Apollonius,  5.  Of  the  Syrian  army  under  Seron.  6. 
The  details  of  the  battle  of  Emmaus.  7.  The  significance  of  the  vic- 
tory at  Bethsura.  8.  The  restoration  of  the  temple  service.  9.  The 
effect  of  the  persecutions  upon  the  Jews. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  Greek  military  equipment  and 
methods  of  warfare.  Gulick,  Life  of  the  Anc.  Greeks,  188-205.  2.  The 
western  headlands  of  Judah.  Kent,  Bib.  Geog.  and  Hist.,  40-2;  Smith, 
Hist.  Geog.  of  Holy  Land,  286-320.  3.  Comparison  of  Judas  with 
other  great  military  commanders.  Conder,  Judas  Maccabaius;  Bevan, 
Jer.  under  the  High  Priests,  97-9;  Smith,  0.  T.  Hist.,  465. 

§  CXI.  The  Long  Contest  for  Political  Independence.  Gen- 
eral Questions:  1.  Describe  the  attitude  of  the  heathen  nations 
toward  the  Jews.    2.  The  political  problems  that  confronted  them. 

319 


APPENDIX 

3.  The  Jewish  attitude  toward  the  heathen  reflected  in  the  book  of 
Esther.  4.  Judas's  east-Jordan  campaign.  5.  Results  of  the  battle  of 
Beth-zacharias.  6.  The  re-establishment  of  Syrian  authority.  7.  The 
victories  over  Nicanor.  8.  The  causes  which  resulted  in  the  death  of 
Judas.  9.  Conditions  in  the  Syrian  court  which  gave  the  Jews  their 
great  opportunity.  10.  The  character  and  policy  of  Jonathan.  11.  The 
honors  and  authority  granted  him  by  the  rival  Syrian  kings. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  history  and  value  of  the 
book  of  Esther.  Paton,  Esther;  Hastings,  D.  B.,  I,  773-6;  En.  Bib., 
II,  1400-5.  2.  The  Syrian  history  of  the  period.  Bevan,  Jer.  unde, 
the  High  Priests,  100-6;  Smith,  0.  T.  Hist.,  465-9.  3.  The  scenes  of 
Judas's  east-Jordan  campaign.     Kent,  Bib.  Geog.  and  Hist.,  214-7. 

§  CXII.  Peace  and  Prosperity  under  Simon.  General  Ques- 
tions: 1.  Describe  the  political  intrigues  which  resulted  in  the  death 
of  Jonathan.  2.  The  character  and  rule  of  Simon.  3.  His  extension 
of  the  Jewish  territory.  4.  The  authority  granted  him  by  the  Jews. 
5.  His  development  of  the  temple  service.  6.  The  causes  that  led  to 
the  completion  of  the  Psalter.  7.  The  religious  life  and  faith  reflected 
in  the  later  psalms. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  Compare  the  characters  of 
the  three  brothers,  Judas,  Jonathan,  and  Simon.  2.  The  guilds  of 
temple  singers.  Hastings,  D.  B.,  IV,  92-3;  Wellhausen,  The  Book  of 
Psalms  (in  S.  B.  0.  T.),  217-9.  3.  The  evidence  that  many  of  the 
psalms  come  from  the  Maccabean  period.  Hastings,  D.  B.,  IV,  152-3; 
Cheyne,  Origin  of  the  Psalter. 

§  CXIII.  The  Rule  of  John  Hyrcanus  and  Aristobulus.  Gen- 
eral Questions:  1.  Describe  the  intrigue  that  resulted  in  the  death 
of  Simon.  2.  The  Syrian  invasion  under  Antiochus  Sidetes.  3.  The 
character  of  John  Hyrcanus.  4.  His  military  policy.  5.  Hisconruests 
in  the  north  and  south.  6.  The  reasons  why  he  lost  the  support  of 
the  Pharisees.     7.  The  significant  events  in  the  reign  of  Aristobulus. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  Contemporary  conditions  in 
the  Syrian  kingdom.  En.  Bib.,  TV,  4356-60;  Gardner,  The  Seleucid 
Kings  of  Syria.  2.  The  history  of  the  Idumeans.  Hastings,  D.  B.,  I, 
644-6;  En.  Bib.,  II,  1181-8;  Buhl,  Edomites.  3.  Compare  the  policy 
of  John  Hyrcanus  with  that  of  David. 

§  CXIV.  The  Pharisees,  Sadducees,  and  Essenes.  General 
Questions:  1.  Describe  the  influences  that  gave  rise  to  the  party  of 
the  Pharisees.  2.  Of  the  Sadducees.  3.  The  characteristics  and  be- 
liefs of  the  Pharisees.     4.  Of  the  Sadducees.     5.  The  political  influence 

320 


APPENDIX 

or  these  parties.  6.  The  characteristics  of  the  sect  of  the  Essenes. 
7.  Their  beliefs. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  party  of  the  Pharisees. 
Hastings,  D.  B.,  Ill,  821-8;  En.  Bib.,  IV,  4321-9.  2.  The  Sadducees. 
Hastings,  D.  B.,  IV,  349-51;  En.  Bib.,  IV,  4234-40.  3.  The  points  of 
contact  between  Essenism  and  Christianity.  Hastings,  D.  B.,  I,  767-72; 
En.  Bib.,  II,  1396-1400;  Thomson,  Books  which  Influenced  Our  Lord, 
75-122;  Cheyne,  Origin  of  the  Psalter,  418-21,  446-9. 

§  CXV.  The  Life  and  Faith  of  the  Jews  of  the  Dispersion. 
General  Questions:  1.  Describe  the  life  of  the  Jews  in  Antioch  and 
Asia  Minor.  2.  The  privileges  granted  them  by  the  Syrian  king. 
3.  The  number  of  the  Jews  in  Egypt.  4.  The  privileges  granted  them 
by  the  Ptolemies.     5.  The  founding  of  the  Jewish  temple  at  Leontopolis. 

6.  Its  significance.  7.  The  occasion  of  the  translation  of  the  Hebrew 
scriptures  into  Greek.  8.  The  important  apologetic  Jewish  writings. 
9.  The  theme  and  date  of  the  Wisdom  of  Solomon.  10.  Its  important 
teachings.     11.  Its  reflections  of  Greek  and  Jewish  thought. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  Characteristics  and  value 
of  the  Greek  translation  of  the  Old  Testament.  Hastings,  D.  B.,  IV, 
864—6;  Swete,  Introd.  to  the  Old  Testament  in  Greek;  En.  Bib.,  IV,  5016- 
22.  2.  The  history  and  contents  of  the  Wisdom  of  Solomon.  Hast- 
ings, D.  B.,  IV,  928-31;  En.  Bib.,  IV,  5336-49;  Deane,  The  Book  of 
Wisdom,  1-^1;  Gregg,  The  Wisd.  of  Sol. 

§  CXVL  The  Decline  of  the  Maccabean  Kingdom.  General 
Questions:  1.  Describe  the  character  of  Alexander  Janneus.  2.  His 
military  policy.  3.  His  treatment  of  his  subjects.  4.  The  extension 
of  Jewish  territory.     5.  The  effects  of  his  rule.     6.  Alexandra's  policy. 

7.  The  fatal  mistakes  of  the  Pharisees.  8.  The  suicidal  quarrels 
between  her  sons,  Hyrcanus  and  Aristobulus.  9.  The  intrigues  of 
Antipater.  10.  The  appeal  to  Rome.  11.  Pompey's  intervention  and 
capture  of  Jerusalem.  12.  The  causes  of  the  fall  of  the  Maccabean 
kingdom.  13.  The  political  effects  of  the  Maccabean  struggle.  14. 
The  impression  which  it  made  upon  Israel's  faith.  15.  The  new  spirit 
that  it  inspired  in  the  Jews. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  Rome's  policy  and  campaigns 
in  the  East.  Goodspeed,  Hist,  of  Anc.  World,  311-9;  Seignohos,  Hist, 
of  Rom.  People,  126-30.  2.  Rome's  earlier  relation  to  the  Jewish  king- 
dom. 3.  The  character  and  career  of  Pompey.  Goodspeed,  Hist,  of 
Anc.  World,  343-9;  Botsford,  Hist,  of  Rome,  175-80,  1S3-9;  Morey, 
Outlines  of  Roman  Hist.,  ch.  20. 

32X 


APPENDIX 


THE  RULE  OF  ROME 

§  CXVII.  The  Rise  of  the  Herodian  House.  General  Ques- 
tions: 1.  Describe  the  repeated  rebellions  -against  Rome  that  were  in- 
stigated and  led  by  Aristobulus  and  his  sons.  2.  The  reasons  why  the 
Jews  rallied  about  their  standard.  3.  Antipater's  character  and  policy. 
4.  Herod's  career  as  governor  of  Galilee.  5.  The  Parthian  conquest 
and  the  temporary  restoration  of  the  Maccabean  rule.  6.  The  imme- 
diate effect  upon  Herod  and  his  family.  7.  Reasons  why  he  was  ap- 
pointed king  of  the  Jews  by  Antony  and  Octavian. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  fortresses  of  Alexandrium 
and  Macherus.  Smith,  Hist.  Geog.  of  the  Holy  Land,  352-3,  569-71; 
Kent,  Bib.  Geog.  and  Hist.,  229,  244-5;  Schurer,  H.  J.  P.,  I,  i,  250-1. 
2.  The  history  of  Rome  from  60  to  40  B.C.  Botsford,  Hist,  of  RomCf 
183-97;  Fowler,  Julius  Ccesar;  Mahaffy,  Gk.  World  under  Roman 
Sway,  ch.  IV.     3.  The  Parthians.    Hastings,  D.  B.,  IH,  680-1. 

§  CXVHI.  Herod's  Policy  and   Reign.     General  Questions: 

I.  Describe  the  strength  and  weakness  of  Herod's  character.  2.  The 
ways  in  which  he  won  the  favor  of  Augustus.  3.  His  building  acti\nty 
within  his  kingdom.  4.  Outside  of  Palestine.  5.  His  treatment  of  his 
subjects.  6.  His  record  as  husband  and  father.  7.  The  effects  of  his 
reign. 

Subjects  for  Specu.l  Research:  1.  Rome  under  Augustus.  Bots- 
ford, Hist,  of  Rome,  204-22;  Bury,  Student's  Rom.  Emp.,  chs.  I-XIV; 
Capes,  Early  Empire,  chs.  I-HI,  XII-XIX.  2.  Herod's  Caesarea. 
Smith,  Hist.  Geog.  of  the  Holy  Land,  138-41;  En.  Bib.,  I,  617-8; 
Kent,  Bib.  Geog.  and  Hist.,  233.  3.  The  various  sides  of  Herod's 
character.  Hastings,  D.  B.,  11,  356-7;  En.  Bib.,  II,  2025-9;  Bevan, 
Jer.  under  the  High  Priests,  148-51. 

§  CXIX.  Herod's  Temple.  General  Questions:  1.  Describe  the 
motives  that  inspired  Herod  to  rebuild  the  temple  at  Jerusalem.  2.  His 
preparations  for  the  work.  3.  The  extension  of  the  temple  area.  4. 
The  different  gates  leading  to  it.  5.  The  surrounding  porches.  6.  The 
temple  proper.     7.  The  temple  ofl5cials.     8.  The  temple  service. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  detailed  plan  and  di- 
mensions of  Herod's  temple.  Hastings,  D.  B.,  IV,  711-6;  En  Bib., 
IV,  4943-7;    Warren,  The  Temple  and  the  Tomb;  Smith,  Jerusalem, 

II,  499-520.  2.  The  administration  of  the  temple  finances.  Hastings, 
D.  B.,  IV,  92-7;  En.  Bib.,  IV,  4949-51;  Smith,  Jerusalem,  I,  351-66. 

322 


APPENDIX 

3.  The  inscription  forbidding  foreigners  to  enter  the  inner  courts. 
Hastings,  D.  B.,  IV,  713-^. 

§  CXX.  The  Messianic  Hopes  and  Religious  Beliefs  of  Juda^ 
ism.  General  Questions:  1.  Describe  the  influences  that  deter- 
mined the  grow'th  of  Israel's  messianic  hopes,  2.  The  different  forms 
which  these  hopes  assumed.  3.  The  kingly  nationalistic  tj'pe  of  mes- 
sianic hope.  4.  The  characteristics  and  development  of  the  apocalyp- 
tic, catastrophic  type  of  hope.  5.  The  type  proclaimed  by  the  great 
ethical  prophets.  6.  The  broadening  and  universalizing  of  Israel's 
messianic  hopes.  7.  The  influence  of  the  Maccabean  struggle  upon 
Israel's  messianic  beliefs.  8.  The  messianic  expectations  of  the  Jews 
at  the  beginning  of  the  Christian  era. 

Subjects  for  Special  Research:  1.  The  origin  of  Israel's  mes- 
sianic hopes.  St.  0.  T.,  Ill,  39^8;  Goodspeed,  Israel's  Messianic 
Hope;  Oesterley,  Evolution  of  the  Messianic  Idea.  2.  The  Sibylline 
Oracles.  Deane,  Pseudepigrapha;  Hastings,  D.  B.,  extra  Vol.,  66-8. 
3.  The  Psalms  of  Solomon.  Ryle  and  James,  The  Pss.  of  Sol.;  Dean^ 
Pseudepigrapha,  25-48. 


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